How to ride a kids’ hoverboard: a step by step guide

As a parent, you want to know that your children are having the best time, but you also want them to be safe. If you’re reading this, then you may have recently bought a kids’ hoverboard for your little ones, or are thinking of doing so. First and foremost, what a great choice – your child will have a blast whizzing around and showing off to their friends.

Still, before they start enjoying their new hoverboard, they need to learn how to ride it. This requires a level of concentration to get started as it relies on a good amount of balance and coordination.

At Electric Ride On Cars, we’ve put together this in-depth guide on how to ride a hoverboard for kids. With our help, your youngster will be a hoverboard master in the blink of an eye!

Use the right safety gear

Before learning how to ride a hoverboard, you need to make sure that the rider has correct safety gear. Being prepared will give you, the parent, peace of mind and can protect your child from serious injury if they were to take a tumble. 

The four main pieces of safety gear they’ll need are:

• Wrist guards
• Elbow pads
• Knee guards
• A suitable helmet

Pre-hoverboard riding checklist

Once your little one has ample kit, it is important to check the board itself. Below are some key points to look out for:

• Firstly, you’ll want to check if the hoverboard has lights, as these are very important for riding in low visibility. All hoverboards stocked by Electric Ride On Cars have lights – but if yours doesn’t, then it is highly recommended that you install some.
• Make sure the hoverboard is well-charged, so it doesn’t run out of battery whilst your child is using it.
• Many kids’ hoverboards have beginner modes. If so, enable this so that the maximum speed is limited.
• Remember to always supervise your child while they ride their hoverboard.

Riding a kids’ hoverboard in four simple steps

Now you know everything you need to do before your kid starts to have fun riding their hoverboard, let’s take a look at how to ride a hoverboard for kids. You will need a basic understanding of how hoverboards work so that you can instruct your kid on how to ride safely.

1) Getting on the hoverboard

Getting onto the hoverboard can be tricky for beginners, and this can especially be the case for little ones. It can often feel like an unnatural thing to do, and it tends to be a bit of a shaky experience! The trick is to take it slowly and give your child all the help they need.

Many kids’ hoverboards come with detachable handles. If yours does, then it’s best to use these the first few times your kid rides the hoverboard. If not, then they’ll need to use something else for support like a fence or wall whilst getting onto the board.

1. To get onto the hoverboard, hold onto the support and then place the dominant foot onto the board first. Encourage your child to place some of their weight onto this foot. When mounted, the board will start to move forward, remember, you can keep hold of the support to make sure the board stops moving.
2. Encourage your child to practise moving the hoverboard back and forth with their foot so that they get used to the sensation. 
3. Then, whilst holding the support, the second foot should be placed onto the board. Offer some support by making sure you’re also holding onto your child.

They should now be standing upright on the board. If there are handles, then they can keep hold of them. If not, then they should let go of the support whilst you keep hold of them for now.

2) Getting off the hoverboard

Before we discuss anything else, it’s important that we cover how to get off the hoverboard. After all, your little one may want to get off straight away if it’s their first time and they’re a bit nervous.

1. Getting off the board is simple as you just follow the steps of getting on – but in reverse. However, there is one important thing to remember. 
2. Make it clear to your child that they should never dismount the hoverboard by stepping forward. They should only ever dismount it by stepping back.

If they try to get off the board by stepping forward, the board will keep moving which could result in a collision. So, when dismounting, they should make sure the board has come to a complete stop. Then, they should step back with their dominant foot first and then the other foot.

3) How to move around on the hoverboard

OK, so your little one now knows how to get on and off the hoverboard. It’s time for them to learn how to ride their new toy.

The first thing to be made aware of is the motors. In a hoverboard’s case, there is one motor for each wheel.

To move forward, lean forward whilst shifting the weight into the balls of the feet. To move backwards, lean back slightly whilst shifting the weight onto the heels. It is important to keep the waist straight and tilt forward and back from the ankles.

Top tip: Let your child practise moving forward and back a few times slowly, whilst you keep hold of them.

4) How to turn the hoverboard

Once your kid has mastered moving forward and backwards, they need to learn how to turn left and right.

The main thing to remember at this step is to use your right toes to turn left and left toes to turn right.

1. When applying forwards and downward pressure with the right toe, the board will go in the opposite direction. When the weight shifts to the left toe, the board will turn right.
2. By placing more weight onto one foot, it achieves sharper turns. For example, making a sharp turn left can be achieved by applying more pressure with the right foot, while also shifting the weight to the right.

However, your little one needs to master the basics of turning before they start attempting sharp turns. It may be a while before they’re ready to try this. If they’re very little and riding their first hoverboard, they should probably just stick to gentle turns.

Things to avoid when riding a hoverboard

Your youngster should now be happily whizzing around on their hoverboard. And, whilst they’ll be having lots of fun, there are some things you need to remind them not to do whilst they’re riding.

• Looking down: It can be hard to resist looking at your feet when you ride a hoverboard, but you need to encourage your kid not to do this. They need to be looking straight ahead so they can see where they’re going.
• Bending knees: Their legs should be straight and in a wide stance to give them full control of the hoverboard. If they bend their knees, it will alter the weight placement of the board which might make them fall off.
• Skateboard tricks: If your little one likes skateboarding, then it might be tempting for them to try some skateboard tricks on the hoverboard. This should definitely be avoided as hoverboards aren’t designed for this.
• Uneven terrain: Whilst your child is learning to ride a hoverboard, they should stick to riding on an even surface. Uneven terrains like sand and gravel should be avoided.

And if you’re in need of any more safety advice for helping your child to ride their hoverboard, you can check out another one of our guides: are hoverboards safe for kids?

FAQs

How old does my kid need to be to ride a hoverboard?

Generally, we say that 8 years old is the rough age children should begin riding a hoverboard. Children younger than this usually don’t have enough balance and coordination to ride one safely. However, you know your child better than anyone. So, it’s ultimately up to you.

Where can my child legally ride their hoverboard?

In the UK, it’s only legal to ride hoverboards on private property. So, your little one can legally ride their new toy around your home and garden, but not on public land such as roads.

Can my 8-year-old ride a 10-inch hoverboard?

Most manufacturers recommend that a child is at least 10 years old before they ride a 10-inch hoverboard. This is because they’re broader than smaller hoverboards and can go quite fast.

Top of the range hoverboards and more at Electric Ride On Cars!

If you’re looking for a hoverboard that’s reliable, fun and will keep your chil entertained for hours then look no further than our range at Electric Ride On Cars. What’s more, we have have a wide variety of the latest and trendy ride on cars for your kids, along with kids’ electric scooters and more.