Walking to school

[minties]

The school Thomas will be going to is a reasonable distance for a wee kid to walk - 12 blocks away (2 up and 10 across). We are doing a fair bit of walking but I'm thinking he might get pretty tired at the end of the school day and find the walk hard? How would your 5 year old cope? Are they too "grown up" to ride on your back if they tire?

 

[seoj]

I would think he'd be fine enough. I honestly usually have my LO's stroller along still (in case) when it's a long day out. But only cause I can't carry my LO long distances along with all my stuff and her stuff if she tires! LOL. Shoulder issues make it tough on me.

Do you have a stroller for your 2yr old that you could attach a toddler stand to- In case?

Not sure about your kid- but my 17 yr old would still take me up on a piggy back ride! LOL. No, seriously she would! And especially when she was little. I can't personally do that- but if you don't mind, I'm sure your kid would love it

 

[suzib76]

I wouldn't use a stroller for a 5yo in school, what a shame if any of his school friends saw him

I was going to suggest bike or scooter

 

[minties]

Sophie would be in the stroller , or walking also, she will be 3.

He can't walk that far now but it's another year until he starts. It's a tiresome walk as it's through the city and you have to wait and cross at the lights at every intersection. I'm not sure about a bike as wouldn't I have to run to keep up?

Our stroller is just a cheap thing but I'll look into a buggyboard

 

[suzib76]

Really I wouldn't put a school child on a buggy board. You wouldn't have to run after a bike if you teach him to cycle alongside you.

 

[Boomerslady]

Our walk to school isn't that far at all, and we walks/scoots there. But there are mums who walk further. A couple have buggies and the kids generally hop in and out, a few use buggy boards with the same principle, but he really the kids scoot. It's easier if they want to walk to just hook it on your buggy, and easier to take back home when they're not on it.

Although I expected Ben to be knackered after school and he's not at all! I still have to take him to the park to run off steam, so your LO might handle the walk better than you think.

 

[emyandpotato]

Rory wouldn't be able to do it but if he's capable I'd try and encourage it as much as possible.

 

[pandacub]

I don't see any school age children using a pushchair here, which is why I made jacob give up the pushchair in October/November time (plus he was just being a lazy bum!) He now rides his balance bike to and from nursery every day. Two days a week he does 8-5 which means leaving the house at 7:35 and not getting back until 5:30 & I really thought he would struggle biking home after that long day but he's fine.

As you've got another yr to go, I'd try and push his endurance maybe? I have no idea how far 12 blocks is though :s

 

[EcoMama]

Yeah I second bike or scoot. I used to tie a dog lead to the back of ds balance bike and hold the other end so he couldn't go too far or fast. He'd prob fall off if I did that to his pedal bike though x

 

[lindseymw]

No idea how far 12 blocks is!

We walk to and from School which is around 1 mile away (unless it's torrential rain!). They cope with this quite well. Joshua uses his Scooter on his way home but our School run is mainly away from roads so he can scoot quite far away from me and I don't have to worry about cars.

 

[RachA]

My 5 year old uses the buggy still on days we walk the whole way. The school is 1 mile away and if she's being compliant (which is rare) it takes in excess of 30min to do the mile walk.
Tbh it doesn't bother me if other parents think she's too old to be in a buggy. They aren't the ones that have to end up carry her and her scooter and school bag for 15min when she decides she isn't walking any more.
It's also unlikely that another child will comment on their school friend being in a buggy unless their parent has said something to them (at this age anyway).

I'm not sure how far 10/12 blocks is but I would consider a buggy board that way you can get him to scoot and then when he gets bored he can go on the buggy board.

 

[hattiehippo]

I would train him up on a scooter or bike so he can use that as tbh I wouldn't expect to see a school age child using a buggy unless they had an additional need that meant it was needed. A buggy board would be fine I think.

I don't know how far 12 blocks is or how busy the road is. We have a 10 min walk to school and back and Tom uses his scooter. Like Boomerslady I've found he is full of beans when he comes out of school and he gets really cross on days we have to drive cos I've come straight from work.

 

[Natsku]

How far is 12 blocks? How long does it take to walk? Maria can walk a mile without getting tired but takes about 40 minutes. Bike or scooter would probably be best, especially if he'll be biking to school by himself when he's older, so he gets used to it.

 

[PresqueVu]

If google is telling the truth, 12 blocks is about a mile?

I tried the 1.6 mile walk with my 4 year old last year when he started school and it worked fine sometimes, as we stopped in a park midway to rest and play and I sorted out a chalkboard map to keep him interested. It was only the last two days of the week.

However the time it takes was far more of an issue for him to pay attention for that long. This was all on foot though, with resting points as he doesn't have the road safety to trust with a scooter or similar and it's a long way to carry child + scooter if he refused to use it!

We get the bus now and that is working so much smoother, there's a short (10 min either end) walk for that. If your school is anything like mine you'll want to allow for the fact that they will send extra items (artwork/leaflets/sometimes awkward and heavy things) home with no warning - so take a rucksack or similar with extra carriers in as they forget not everyone has a car waiting outside!

 

[Tasha]

Lots of the children at my LO's school use scooters. It makes the walk quicker x

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Mine walked six miles daily when my son started because i didnt drive x

 

[Mummytoosh]

I had the same concerns but by the time my eldest 2 started school they were able to walk it fine. My 4 year old can be a lazy thing too As long as you leave in plenty of time so there's no rushing and you can take it at his pace. I had a buggy board but didn't really get the use out of it xx

 

[aimee-lou]

We have a 3/4 of a mile each way school run. Takes us about 20 mins if I keep the pace up. Earl's been ok walking it since he started at the nursery next door to the school last September (Sept 2013 lol) so he was just shy of 4.

Some afternoons he does struggle but I try to keep him chipper, I take him a snack if I think he's going to be flagging etc. I DON"T use a scooter. I have 2 smallies in a double pushchair, all his bags and bits attached to the buggy. 1. I cannot then just add the scooter on top of all of that - it makes it far too awkward and annoying! and 2. If something was to happen to him I have all of the kids with me. If he goes too far ahead and cannot hear me I wouldn't be able to go and get him for example (not always his fault as the road is busy, but this just adds to the danger). I personally think that for me, in my circumstances, there's just too many risks so he walks and stays close.

 

[tommyg]

If 12 blocks is a mile that should be manageable for a 5 year old. Remember in school they are sat down a fair bit it isn't like they are constantly running about so he shouldn't to too physically tired. If the roads are safe enough I would consider a scooter or bike.

TBH I think you could be setting him up for a bout of ridicule if you attempt to use a stroller or buggy. While some kids might not think about it other kids will have been told "buggies are for babies" as parent try to persuade them to walk / leave the buggy at home. So you can't blame them if they take to ridiculing or babying a class mate who uses a buggy.

 

[minties]

I don't know how long a mile is, sorry, but thanks so much for all the replies! I'll check how far it is on google maps soon (we do km here).

He hasn't been in a stroller for almost a year so that was never a plan, and Sophie would be in it anyway. I can't put a buggy board on our stoller, I tried. There isn't enough room for Thomas to fit between me and the stroller. I uavet no issues with 5 year olds in strollers at all though.

He has a bike and a scooter so I'll see how that goes. To be honest I'm a bit paranoid he's going to peddle ahead and get hit by a car.

Edited to add, it is 2.5km away or 1 mile and 974 yards. He can do a 3k walk so should be ok.