starting part time school, still needing pushchair - please help!

[sickoftheholidays]

Quick poll,
am I being nuts considering taking pushchair to get (just)4yo DD from school in her first couple of weeks. Its a 1.75 walk home, and she's doing 3 full days a week.
She gets tired quickly, moans loudly persistently and I'm expecting being at school all day will take a lot out of her.

No. My DS's bf lived a long walk from the school, and his mother used a pushchair during his first weeks in reception. Much better than taking a car!

A four year old should be able to walk that sort of distance.

Has she a little bike?

Agree - use the pushchair :)

mini micro scooter?

Walk

They can walk for miles at 4, really surprisingly. Also a pushchair is a bit babyish for a big schoolgirl

we have a half hour (at my pace) walk to school, I take a push chair if needed. Ds2 is starting nursery next week and ds1 is in year one. Up until probably last term, I would pop both kids in the bike trailer, or put the little one in the buggy and if the older one was tired at the end of the week, he might hitch a lift on the handle/sitting on the foot bit of the buggy. Otherwise they ride their bikes, and now as they get older they both ride their bikes/youger one might go in the buggy for the second school run of the day.

Who cares what anyone thinks? They dont have to drag my whining kids home for over half an hour. I find the people that raise an eyebrow are the ones that tend to not actually do that much walking with the kids.

Nothing wrong with push chair but mini micro scooters are great.

A piece of fruit at the school gate when they come out works wonders for energy levels, I found.

Mine had to walk, both to and from school and pre-school because I was pushing disabled dd2. They soon get used to it.

Having said that, plenty of the others did get pushed by their parents.

It is entirely up to you.

My DS was shattered the first few weeks and would ahve given his right arm for a pushchair home

Do it, just make it clear to her that its 'just for a couple of weeks' so she doesnt expect it forever

I would try a scooter or a bike.

She should be able to walk that far.

Try races, treasure hunts (who can find a white feather) or a dolly in a pushchair.

People always seem to post on these threads that those who say oooh no, get her to walk are those who drive everywhere.

For the record we never drive to or from school (unless we need to be 6 miles away by 4pm). We also walk everywhere in the locality (up to 2 miles).

The moany thing seems to be a stage you have to go through with gradually walking further and I guess the muscle do hurt as they learn to walk a longer distance, just like our muscles hurt when we first exercise in a different way from what we have been doing.
It is a little upset and very annoying, but a stage I feel they have to go through to get to be good walkers.

Unless there is a medical need, I do think that starting school is the time to ditch the buggy. It is odd when I see children in school uniform being pushed into the playground. But it is up to you really, just not something that I would want to start as it could be a pain to stop. Try a bike or scooter. Stamina does build up quite quickly.

.I agree with the doughnuts after school idea.

Who cares what anyone thinks? Use the pushchair, if only just to lug things. She will ditch the pushchair of her own accord when she's ready. It's a place of safety for many new-schoolers.

Thanks all of you for not shouting me down. I'm hoping that peer pressure will encourage her out of the pushchair quite quickly!
I could use the car, but would prefer to walk as need to lose some padding myself, want to cut pollution, hate trying to park near school, and its healthier for kids to walk.
I wonder if I could drive part way, park then walk the rest, gradually getting further away until she can walk the whole thing?

take pushchair for bag/ coats etc . start for home with child walking and their mountain of stuff on buggy, use pushchair for child when well out of sight of school.

Or get child on a scooter.

Sorry, but boggling at pushchair being "place of safety for many new-schoolers".

I think I have seen about three children being pushed too or from school in their uniform in 7 years at the school gates. And they all got looks tbh!

Please OP do whatever you want but don't run off with the idea that lots of school children still use the pushchair. They really really don't.

Does yr DD want to use the buggy btw?

I personally think the key is to ignore the looks from other mums (seriously, why do they care?? its not their kid in the buggy, it is just a buggy after all....) and do what works for you. If you want to use it, use it, and who cares what anyone else thinks??

Snack. Walk.

I've never seen a school-aged child in a pushchair and actually I think kids with no mobility problems should be out of them by that age.

Oh yes, and in reception DD1 used to walk about half a mile with me to drop off her sister at the childminder, and then another 3/4 mile with me to get to school. She is not a particularly athletic child.

I used a pushchair when dd was in Year R. She was the youngest in the year, and only did mornings. And bearing in mind that ds was coming out at 3.30, that was four one-mile trips which might be ok on a nice day, but not so easy when you're running late, when they're tired or ill etc etc.

I see plenty of people with Year Rs in pushchairs, and often if they have a younger sibling the toddler gets turfed out and the 4-year-old climbs in.

I think, as with most things, you need to start as you mean to go on.

Listening to a whining child who doesn't want to walk is no fun but I think you are just delaying the inevitable and it would possibly be harder to walk a long distance, in a few weeks time, if you are both used to the buggy.

Maybe parking the car further and further away, like you said, is the way to go.

You can try different ways until you find something that suits you both and the weather. Park and stride is a good compromise, especially in the winter. Scooters are great - the ones with 2 front wheels are easier to manage.

I wouldn't take a buggy TBH. Never seen a schoolchild in one unless they've hijacked a younger sibling's.

We find a scooter works really well for that kind of distance.

In the first few weeks of reception, do what works for you. Children are exhausted and - even if they can walk physically - might be too tired to behave well.

Lots of people are very judgemental about 4 year olds being in pushchairs. However, since 93% of children are driven to school, they shouldn't be!

1.75 miles is a decent distance and I think a reception child needs a bit of babying when they are starting school.

I have no doubts your child can't walk that distance but physical ability and willingness are different things.

Try a bit of food to boost energy levels at the end of the day. Can you split the journey at a chocolate shop?