Best Beginner Ice Skates for Kids Learning to Skate
What makes a good beginner ice skate?
It's not simply whether it's labelled a hockey skate, figure skate or recreational skate.
A beginner has a completely different challenge:
They don't know how to skate yet.
Before children can work on strides, stops and turns, they have to learn to stand, move and balance on the ice.
What Should Parents Look for in Beginner Skates?
A good beginner skate should fit properly, feel comfortable, provide ankle support and allow a child to develop their skating skills.
But there is another question worth asking:
Was the blade actually designed for a beginner?
Traditional skate blades weren't specifically designed around the challenges of a child's first experience on the ice.
Balance Blades were.
A Skate Designed Around the Beginner
The patented Balance Blades design addresses four of the biggest challenges beginning skaters face.
Helps Them Stand
Front assistive indentations provide traction when deliberately engaged, helping beginners stand and initiate movement.
Helps Them Move
Once children can stay on their feet, they can begin stepping, pushing and moving across the ice.
Helps Them Balance
A wider, flatter middle section provides greater stability while children develop their balance and begin gliding.
Helps Prevent Rear Falls
Rear indentations are designed to engage during a rearward slip and help prevent the child from falling backward.
Does the Skate Do the Balancing for Them?
No.
Your child is still doing the skating.
They stand on their own.
They balance their own body.
They bend their knees.
They move their own feet.
They push and develop their own stride.
Balance Blades provide targeted assistance during the earliest stage of learning.
As their skating develops, that assistance can be progressively reduced through transitional sharpening.
Will Children Have to Relearn How to Skate?
No. They're learning to skate from day one.
Balance Blades don't replace learning to skate. They help beginners get started while they develop their own balance, movement and skating ability.
There is no published scientific evidence establishing that Balance Blades cause bad skating habits or require children to relearn how to skate.
What About Adjustable Beginner Skates?
Balance Blades adjustable skates are designed for growing beginner skaters.
They provide ankle support, a comfortable and secure fit and multiple size adjustments. An insole sizing guide helps parents select and adjust the skate to their child's current foot size.
Adjustability can also allow children to use the same skates over multiple skating seasons.
The Best Beginner Skate Is One Designed for the Beginning
Before the stride comes standing.
Before speed comes movement.
Before independence comes confidence.
Stand sooner. Get moving sooner. Help prevent rear falls. Build confidence.
Learn to skate with Balance Blades.