Can your kids skip (with a rope)?

[SinceWhenDid]

One of the neighbour's kids has been out with a skipping rope recently and I was just idly musing that you don't see kids skipping as much as you used to.

7 year old ds has been having turns and he is actually pretty good, can even do the cross rope thing.

Do kids still skip at school playtime and play out at home with a skipping rope? Or is it a dying skill? And what about elastics?

16yo can do it well... DH can do it badly, I think DS1 badly... rest of us hopeless. I'm 50 & every girl in my generation (except me) was capable. I also couldn't tie shoe laces well.

DD (4) has a skipping rope but hasn't mastered it yet. She was outside trying to skip yesterday.

I'm pretty sure that neither a skipping rope nor skipping plastics would be allowed in a school playground.
Although I do remember that about 20 years ago a passerby noticed us skipping in the front garden so she walked up, let herself in the gate and told us her daughters wanted a turn. It was a bit odd.

Ds is saying they have been skipping at playtime at school. Maybe there is about to be a skipping fad

How odd about the lady, Anotherday!

Ds now asking for a skipping rope

Are you my neighbour, OP? DD has been skipping in our back garden. She's ok at it, not as good as I was at that age though!

Skipping is sometimes organised by the break-time playleaders at our primary school (long ropes type), amongst other games like four square. So both my dds can skip.

Dd was regularly made to skip for warming up exercises in her sports club. It was recommended to her to improve her balancing, somehow. And fitness. However it is all skipping alone.
When I was a child we used to skip in pairs face to face with one skipping rope or more than two people with a longer rope. Kids don't do that anymore afaik.

I spent half my childhood skipping, on my own or with other children, everyone could do it.

DD is 6 and still pretty hopeless at it. I was a little worried there was a problem with her coordination until school sports day last year, when the skipping race was absolutely hilarious and DD was by no means the worst skipper in her year. I guess children just don't do it as much nowadays so don't get as good.

Maybe as she gets older she'll suddenly get the knack of it like she has with throwing and catching, but at the moment she looks at me skipping with open mouthed awe as if I am doing backflips

Yes DD loves it. Been doing it since 5yo. Do a race in sports day where they run whilst skipping. She’s has it down to a T. The boys are not so good.....

Lol Broken probably not your neighbour as kids are playing out front

Glad to know skipping is still going strong up and down the country. I guess having boys it hasn't been on my radar as much.

Ds says they have also been playing with a big rope, with rhymes where they change places.

DD6 skips... I tripped over the sodfing rope whilst pegging laundry out earlier!

Skipping whilst hanging out washing - now that would be a good skill

DS2 was taught to skip at school in Y2. They did a competition (he won in his category).

He hasn’t skipped out of school ever though.

I didn't get the hang of skipping until secondary, and never mastered long-rope at all (funny to think that we slipped in secondary - I cant imagine today's teens doing that) so I'm delighted that my dc were taught to skip at school in Y1/Y2. Skipping ropes are regularly brought out into the playground, and the school even has a supply for those who don't have their own ropes.

Dd1 is 7 and can skip and learnt to when she was 4 or 5. They also do old style skipping games at after school club.
Skipping ropes were a popular party bag filler in yr1.
Dd2 is 3.5 and hilariously cute at attempting to copy her big sis😂

Did anyone else do the game where two children stand with an elastic band around their legs between them, and child in the middle performs complex routines jumping over and on the elastic. I was so obsessed with this game I used chairs to be my play mates at home with elastic around the legs.

Sorry not British not sure it was popular here!

There's a group that goes to school to set up skipping competitions and fun games

In the primary school l teach in ( in lreland) the children skip at lunch break all the time. And hulahoops. When my dd mastered skipping she became obseesed and literally skipped from morning until night.
Then one day she stopped and that was it. Moved on to master the next thing. Its a great fitness thing for them.

Toomuch we played that we was around 9/10 I'm not sure what it was called though

In primary we called it Elastics, in secondary we called it French Skipping.

French skipping toomuchofthegood? England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales inside outside inside out - all the rage at my primary school!

Oh, I remember that!

Yes that's it! I shall have to look into it for DD and start a revival!

Yes elastics or French skipping. And you moved the elastic up and up.

Impressed that some of you were still skipping in secondary.