What Is an Appropriate Age To Teach Your Kid To Climb Stairs?

Climbing stairs is a developmental milestone that ensures your child excels in motor skills. Teaching your toddler how to climb up and down stairs is a great way to train their leg muscles and improve coordination. It enhances their spatial awareness and overall balance.

Kids learn the risks of falling when they try to balance their first steps. Parents generally discourage their toddlers from climbing or descending the stairs at this stage until they learn to walk properly. But, things change on their third birthday because by then, they are so eager to learn how to use the stairs on their own that it’s hard to stop them. That’s how parents know it is time to take down those baby gates for stairs. It happens in stages, and we’ll describe each stage briefly in this article.

CRAWLING THE STAIRCASE UNDER SUPERVISION

By nine months, most babies are confident about how to crawl all by themselves. Crawling on their own and crawling down the staircase are two very different things. Just before their first birthday, they feel more confident with their movements and know how to crawl up the step using both their legs and hands while stepping down by shimming their body backward. This is when it is necessary to have a baby gate for stairs.

WALKING THE STAIRCASE WITH A PARENT’S SUPPORT

During toddlerhood, they confidently crawl up and down the stairs using their hands and feet under adult supervision. By doing this, they become more familiar with the rhythm of climbing the stairs. Parents help their babies practice by holding their hands.

WALKING THE STAIRCASE HOLDING RAILS

By the time toddlers are 17 to 20 months of age, you can make them learn how to climb the stairs, maintain their upright position and hold the rails. You might notice, however, that toddlers only use their stronger food for climbing. They still need your help to climb the stairs using both feet. When you feel that a kid has mastered climbing up the stairs, you can teach them how to climb down the stairs, as it is a bit tricky to maintain balance while descending.

TAKING STAIRS INDEPENDENTLY

Around their second birthday, climbing up and down the stairs is no more scary to them. Using the handrail, toddlers can take stairs all by themselves, but they still need a year of practice before they can take down the baby gate for stairs. They need this time to learn how to use both feet, balance themselves without the handrail and use their reflexes to hold the rail if pushed. By this age, you can teach your toddler to use both their feet, but remember to take it slow, as climbing on their own is still a big milestone for them to achieve.

CONCLUSION

Children under five are at a high risk of stair-related injuries. Soft tissue injuries are most common, but the head and neck also get affected in unfortunate events. Babies under the age of one are the most likely to be hospitalized. It is important to treat the staircase as a potentially dangerous place for children. Start early, gradually let them master their skills under your supervision, and keep the baby gate for stairs until they are three years old. You should also continue supervising until they’re five years old.