Toddler Trampolining – Everything Parents Must Know

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Welcome to yet another post packed with practical advice and insightful reflections. This time, we’re going to discuss all aspects of toddler trampolining.

When we started researching information for this article, we’ve set a goal for ourselves to write the most comprehensive, all-inclusive toddler trampolining guide for parents. It’s a lengthy one, but we hope you’ll find it useful.

Let’s dive in.


Toddlers And Trampolines

Trampolining for toddlers is a great way to have fun, and it’s both enjoyed by adults and children. Often, we engage in recreational activities during leisure hours with our loved ones to ease off stress and to exercise the body for good health.

Trampolines or Bounce Mats are produced in different shapes and sizes ranging from 5 feet to 15 feet; quite contrary, the best trampoline for toddlers are the mini trampolines or rebounders.

Toddlers are always active, and they value their free play a lot because of the opportunity to run around, have fun, and also discover new things in their environment. Do you remember how much fun you had when you visited a trampoline park as a child?

Why not recall childhood memories by revisiting a trampoline park with your kids this time? It’ll surely make them happy, and you can consider jumping too — go ahead and manifest your inner childlikeness.

Due to the number of accidents and various blogs on the adverse effects of trampolining, parents are discouraged about visiting a trampoline park with their toddlers. However, we tend to focus more on the negative consequences at the expense of the enormous benefits that could be derived from trampoline play.

Besides the unexplainable joy and pleasure experienced during this activity, there are several other health and mental benefits of trampolining with your lovely youngster.


Benefits of Trampolining for Toddlers


Trampolining Encourages Exercise

Exercises are a great way of improving both mental and physical health. More so, it sharpens learning and thinking skills.

toddlers and trampolines

Toddlers prefer to sit in front of a screen all day to play computer games and watch video gameplay while engaging in physical exercises — like Nintendo “let us get moving” video games. Rebounders are great tools for activities, and they fit perfectly well into any routine.

So, if you have toddlers that detest engaging in such activities, take them to a trampoline park as it helps them burn calories. Studies have proven that thirty minutes of running or jogging can be equated to ten minutes of jumping.

Naturally, your toddler might reject the idea of running for thirty minutes as it’s tiring. However, they could jump till forever on a trampoline due to the pleasure derived from it, and you’d hear words like, “Mom, I’m in the air. I can jump higher than anybody.”


Aids Learning

While jumping on a trampoline, you can aid your toddlers’ learning by instructing them to count numbers or name the letters of the alphabet, call the names of animals, list shapes, colors, and so on. Besides, the trampoline aids blood and oxygen circulation to the brain, and this makes the mind more alert and focused.

And it also helps them participate in other classroom activities like arts and crafts, usage of scissors, and playing with coloring books and crayons.

You could even challenge them to compete with other kids and reward the winner. This would interest them a lot and challenge them to prepare hard against the next trampoline time to enable them to win. Research has also shown that engaging in physical activities can help improve cognitive learning. Furthermore, balloons and sprinklers can be added to entice them to participate in the activity.


Strong Immune System and Heart Health

A ten-minute jump on a trampoline helps improve your toddler’s little heart and also gives the muscles the necessary strength for a robust cardiovascular system. It also protects the muscles and bones as a low impact exercise and strengthens the ligaments while safeguarding the joints.

Since trampolining is an outdoor game, toddlers gain the sun’s Vitamin D, which is needed for healthy bones to prevent future osteoporosis. Vitamin D also helps improve the cardiovascular system, aids brain and respiratory system development, and prevents cell diseases.


Aids Socialization

Remember the friends you made when you visited the trampoline park as a child and how you still get in touch with them until this day? Maybe you cried when it was time to leave, and perhaps you wanted to follow your new friend’s home. Outdoor games like trampolining help improve socialization skills in toddlers, and they form a network of friends at an early stage.

Trampolining also helps build a toddler’s self-esteem. Many children suffer from low self-esteem, autism, or natural shyness due to many issues. However, when they visit a place with many children having fun and running around, it boosts their self-confidence.

Honestly, going to school every day helps a child socialize well. Nevertheless, if you have a child that is shy or somewhat sensitive, the child may find it challenging to enjoy school life since all they’ll look forward to is going to the trampoline park after school.

Trampolining also teaches little ones to wait for their turns, self-esteem, and improvement in communication skills with like peers.


toddler learn jumping trampoline

Persistence

Jumping on a trampoline is not a spontaneous activity. A toddler has to learn how to balance well and jump, plus hanging in the air for about two seconds.

However, due to persistence and determination to join and have fun, they continue to try until they perfect the skill.

While jumping, children enjoy trying new skills like bounces, somersaults, and fun split tricks. Children keep going until they perfect the routine.

This builds their courage and urges them to persist until they reach their goals as a child. This spillover effect carries strongly until adulthood; it is a skill that can be learned at a young age.


Teaches Independence

It is hard to leave your toddler to walk around a park alone with little or no supervision amongst other children that are from different homes.

Nonetheless, you’d be teaching your toddler how to be independent and make decisions on their own while remembering everything mother has taught them. Toddlers will advance in life by maintaining their good courage habits in the outside world.


Stress Reliever and Encourages Good Sleep

After a long week of pressure from going to school, calculation of math, science, and other subjects, there’s a need to ease off stress through outdoor activities. Jumping on a trampoline won’t be a bad idea though, as the action, it makes toddlers relax and forget about all the anxieties they’ve been through during the week.

After the complete relaxation and pleasure your toddlers have enjoyed during the day, they bathe, eat, and head straight to bed to enjoy a deep night’s sleep. Sleeping is essential for toddlers for good mental and physical health, improved behavior and attention, and learning.

Despite all these great benefits derived from trampolining, there are also adverse effects that you should guard against by any probable means. Many types of research and studies have warned parents sternly against trampolining, especially those with toddlers younger than six years.


Are Trampolines Safe for Toddlers? What Parents Can Do to Safeguard Their Children

Trampolining poses a significant threat of accident or injury for toddlers. Trampoline jumping could lead to sprains and fractures of arms and legs and also head injuries. Also, toddlers tend to fall off while jumping, which may cause cuts and bruises on their bodies.

Furthermore, engaging in trampoline jumps for too long may lead to joint or ankle pains, back and knee pains, amongst other activities. There’s a need to mind postures while jumping to avoid any pain, but toddlers might forget safety while playing, thus leading to aches and pains, head, neck and ankle injuries, strains and sprains.

Furthermore, toddlers are fourteen times likely to experience accidents than older children. Asides from these minor injuries, toddler trampolining could also lead to severe accidents which may have permanent effects on the toddler. They include:

  • Proximal Tibial Fractures

    This is a type of fracture that affects the shinbone just around the knee and the broken bone or tissue. In most cases, this must be treated using the surgical operation to guarantee stability after healing and reduce future bone problems like arthritis. This affects children under six years and is caused when they jump with older ones.
  • Sternal Injuries

    This is a fracture of the breastbone around the chest. This could lead to difficulty and pains in breathing and also require a surgical operation for stabilization.
  • Vertebral Artery Dissection (VAD)

    It is an internal lining of the vertebrae artery around the neck, and it gives blood to the brain. This could lead to permanent neurologic complications if not adequately treated.
  • Atlanto-Axial Subluxation

    It is a twist of the first and second cervical vertebrae caused when the neck is flexed and could cause constant headaches, endless neck pains, and spinal cord problems in severe cases.

Accidents occur in trampolining when adults don’t follow important instructions.

Perhaps you remember when you visited a trampoline park as a little child, and your parents followed you everywhere to monitor and restrict performing some stunts and flips, and you wondered why it was so? Here are some causes of accidents in trampoline jumping amongst toddlers.

The first cause of an accident in trampoline jumping, according to experts, is “Multiple Users.” Jumping alone doesn’t sound fun, yeah? Nonetheless, equipment instructions warn parents to restrict jumps to only one per time, especially when the toddlers are of different ages. An imbalance could cause severe falls and injuries.

toddler jumping on trampoline

Furthermore, jumping toddlers’ clothing could contact the frames and the springs. This snagging of the equipment is especially true when toddlers wear stretchy clothes that have a propensity to get stuck inside the springs.

Also, when parents don’t pay attention to the padding of these springs, it can cause a significant threat to safety.

More so, the lack of adult supervision during jumping can cause wounds. Toddlers like to practice different stunts, which could cause damage to them, mainly when their mother or father is not concentrating.

Make sure you supervise your toddler whenever you visit the park or during their playtime on the trampoline in your garden.

Also, the trampoline shape at times could cause accidents. Consequently, statistical research is lacking, which shows the best trampoline shape that is suitable for toddlers.

However, a rectangular-shaped trampoline might be safer for toddlers as it provides ampler space for consistent bounce and landing than a circular trampoline.

More than 100,000 injuries are reported amongst toddlers from trampolining, and it led to the formation of different institutions that have researched and documented these warnings since 1999.

Even though you want your toddler to have fun while jumping on a trampoline, establish safety measures that one should enact before you allow your toddler to bounce on the trampoline. Accidents might still occur during the process, but they will keep to a minimum.


Safety Precautions for Trampolining Toddlers (And Their Parents)

These are some toddler trampoline safety precautions that could guide you and your toddler while trampolining:

Whenever you’re visiting a trampoline park with your kids, make sure you supervise them fully while jumping. When mom says, “Don’t do this or that.” your toddler will obey because they know the consequences of disobeying their mother. Also, your toddler won’t want to break a tooth while playing to avoid mockery from friends.

Also, if you have a trampoline in your garden, advise your toddlers against jumping whenever older ones aren’t around to supervise them. Place adults around the edges of the trampolines as well. To make sure they don’t jump without supervision, remove ladders or chairs, which could aid them in climbing onto the trampoline alone.

Accordingly, jumping should be done one at a time. Studies have shown that most trampoline injuries occur when more than one person jumps at a time. Your toddler should learn to wait for his or her turn and avoid struggling to reduce accidents. It is true your toddler might prefer jumping with a friend or sibling because it is more fun and pleasurable, and you might want to grant the request.

Hence, if you grant the request, make sure your toddler jumps with playmates who have the same weight because heavier toddlers can generate more upward impaction forces than younger ones. Strictly adhere to this warning to avoid accidents for your toddler.

Make sure you place the trampoline on level ground; don’t place trampolines on hard surfaces or asphalt. Sandy areas are a perfect spot to place trampolines. If you just bought a trampoline, try to take time to find a suitable spot to put it and don’t rush while assembling it.

Placing trampolines on the unleveled ground can cause it to flip up and turn kids away while they’re jumping. You don’t want to picture this kind of accident.

Also, ensure the spot is free from any harmful objects or clothing lines to avoid any problems. And make sure the trampoline is placed in a fenced area to avoid attracting other older kids climbing and injuring themselves.

Avoid introducing advanced somersaults and flips for toddlers while jumping. Another high percentage of accidents occur while somersaulting and flipping on trampolines. Toddlers might not be able to control themselves while jumping, and they could lose concentration and balance. This can lead to a spraining of ankles and fractures of arms or legs.

Make sure you pay attention to trampoline weight limits and don’t exceed the stipulated weight to avoid the collapse of the trampoline mats while jumping.

Try to keep your toddler younger than five years old away from using trampolines.

American Academy of Pediatrics, AAP, released research on the use of trampoline for toddlers. According to the AAP, toddlers younger than five have lighter bodies, and their bones aren’t fully developed to endure repetitive jumping. Thus, too much tension on their young bodies could lead to imbalance and future bone problems.

Additionally, they have lesser concentration. Notwithstanding, when there’s a provision of trampolines suitable for their age, they can engage in the activity with strict supervision.

Allow kids to stay in the middle of the trampoline and ensure they jump with bare feet or safety socks. Jumping with wedges or heels can lead to accidents and damage to the trampoline’s surface. Thus, ensure toddlers jump with bare feet. Safety belts or harnesses should also be worn when toddlers use trampolines for sports practices.

Avoid stretchy clothes as they could get stuck in between springs that hold the trampoline together. If you’d be buying a personal trampoline, consider some spring-free trampolines during selection. They are safer.

Ensure the jumping area is always kept clean. Clear away toys, broken branches, bottles, pins or nails, and other harmful objects away from the trampoline surface. Also, ensure you check for worn-out parts and substitute when necessary.

Make sure your trampolines have safety pads over the springs. This is to avoid any injury from the springs while jumping for toddlers. Ensure you buy these pads for your trampoline if it lacks them. Moreover, make sure you inspect these pads periodically to guarantee safety while jumping.

You can also guard your trampolines with safety nets to avoid injuries for your toddlers. It reduces the risk of toddlers falling off while jumping and also lessens the misuse of trampolines. Also, ensure you properly install the safety nets for your trampoline very well. In addition, make sure toddlers don’t climb safety nets while playing as they could fall while climbing.

toddler trampoline safety
Trampoline Safety Net Enclosure

In case you lack access to safety nets, make sure kids jump in the center of the trampoline mats. This would keep them safe from falling off while jumping.

More importantly, in case a part of the trampoline is inadequate and unavailable for change or repairs, discard immediately and get a new one. Managing a trampoline can be disastrous, you can’t tell when it’ll flip or collapse.

If you have a personal trampoline in your garden, make sure your insurance covers it, and you could get a rider permit while purchasing the trampoline. Also, research thoroughly on the brand of trampolines to get when purchasing one. Use trusted brands with warranties.

Before visiting a trampoline park with your toddler, ensure they follow the rules and regulations given by the American Association of Pediatrics (AAP) and in case of disobedience or complacency, make reports to the proper authorities, and hence, toddlers should not be allowed to jump.

Trampolines produced during this time have shorter warranties than previously produced ones; thus, periodic inspection of safety equipment is needed to ensure safety for toddlers. Ensure you review safety kits placed inside the trampolines after buying.

Never allow your toddlers to jump out of the trampolines; they should walk out of the trampolines to ensure they are safe and don’t land on unleveled ground.

Make sure you set time limits for toddlers to jump. This would prevent them from continued jumping even when they are tired, which could lead to sprains or strains.

In case you’re considering visiting a trampoline park soon or buying one, these benefits and precautions can advise you while also avoiding toddler accidents. Many times, we want to discard instructions and enjoy the pleasure and fun.

Subsequently, while doing this, remember toddlers use this tool more and controlling themselves while playing is not guaranteed, unlike adults. And trampolines can ensure lasting fun when these precautions are adequately followed.


Toddlers and Trampolines at Home vs Trampoline Park

Due to particular preferences, you can decide to get a trampoline planted in your garden to avoid harmful objects. This could be a result of your busy schedule on weekends, which can deprive you of the opportunity of visiting a trampoline park with your kids.

Also, as a type of exercising tool that allows one to shed extra flesh with little or no stress at all, you can purchase your trampoline and enjoy the fun and pleasure together with your toddlers as a family.

toddlers and trampoline park

One of the significant benefits of purchasing a personal trampoline is the assurance of regularly exercising and play without leaving the comfort of your home. If your toddler enjoys playtime, especially on the trampoline mat, you can consider getting one in your garden. All you need is proper supervision, and this can also strengthen family bonding.

As a plus, if you need to spend some time alone without your kids, you could instruct them to play on the trampoline in the garden as long as there’s an adult to supervise them.

More so, it gives an excellent opportunity to supervise your toddlers adequately than in a massive park filled with children and many distractions that can take away your attention.

Furthermore, it’s a way to ease off stress from your toddler after school hours. They could exercise and feel refreshed anew in the evening when you install a trampoline in your garden. This would enable them to sleep well and get relaxed and nourished for a new day.

Additionally, it allows you to get the right trampoline for your toddler based on their age and weight. In a case where there are riders, permits, and insurance, you’re seventy percent sure of safety for your toddler.

Equally important, toddler trampolining in the park also has its benefits as it aids socializing and meeting new kids for your toddler. Since a park generally has children playing and having fun, your toddler will also have the opportunity to make new friends and socialize amidst their peers.

The opportunity is present for your toddler to be independent at a very young age. Since it’s a park, your toddler will have to stay on their own sometimes when you rush to get a drink or grab a bag from the car. This, in turn, helps the toddler to think on their own and know the next action to carry out.

Besides, it helps the toddler learn with their peers and play games to increase their knowledge and creativity. Kids count or recite names of animals, colors, and so on while jumping. It will help their memory and make them remember forgotten things. Also, it boosts a child’s courage and makes them get rid of shyness and teach them practical communication skills with their friends.

If you’re an outgoing person, it’s an excellent way to explore your environment and sightsee with your family. It also allows kids to adapt to a new environment and explore new things.

You get to choose your preference for toddler trampolining, and none is more advantageous. Both still provide fun and pleasure. It also helps your toddler enjoy their playtime and makes them relax well.

On the contrary, ensure you follow the safety precautions for trampolining at all times and read rules and regulations when you get to the park. This will help your toddler avoid falling victim to accidents or injuries while providing them with great enjoyment during playtime.


Best Toddler Trampoline – Our Top 3 Choices

Since there are different sizes of trampolines, you want to buy a fun machine that is suitable for the ages of your children. Most importantly, you want your children to learn and have fun by abiding by the safety guidelines and precautions. Take care not to purchase a trampoline that is too big or too advanced for your young one.

First, consider where you will place your new trampoline. Ideally, surfaces should be robust and sturdy. Familiar places to put a trampoline are outside in the backyard on solid dirt surfaces, bark, or cushioning surfaces that are shock absorbent.

The best toddler trampolines have safety nets to contain any unpreferable accidents. The hooks that attached to the padded 360-degree ring should be made with a soft but sturdy material that will not damage small fingers, hands, and feet.

Furthermore, dependable toddler trampolines have protective padding that usually is different in color than the baseline material for simple identification. Parts should be easy to assemble without any extraordinary difficulties. Additionally, inspect the hardware to make sure there aren’t any inconsistencies or defects.

Lastly, check the weight requirements of the trampoline for toddlers you desire to purchase. Sometimes parents have a desire to jump with their children. For safety hazards, you don’t want to overload the apparatus.

Also, understand the storage requirements. It is reasonable to expect to store the trampoline in an easy to reach space that is safe from your curious toddler.

Here our best toddler trampoline picks that meet the criteria we’ve just discussed:


SKYWALKER TRAMPOLINES 60” Round,...
Skywalker trampoline
safety pad trampoline Skywalker
Enclosure Net Toddlers Skywalker Trampoline

Skywalker Mini Trampoline For Toddlers with Enclosure Net

The Skywalker Mini Trampoline will let you create exciting and imaginative games with your toddler while developing his or her gross motor skills.

Toddler trampoline safety is your main concern. Your young player will enjoy bouncing on the 60-inch padded mat that will provide extra protection from bumps and bruises.

Your toddler’s memory will improve while bouncing up and down on the ocean animals — a whale, a starfish, and a dolphin — that have been painted on the bottom of the sturdy green jumping mat. Engage with your toddler through exciting ocean games that will boost memorization skills.

The Skywalker Mini Trampoline provides security and stability for your toddler with every bounce. Every purchase includes a limited 3-year manufacturer’s warranty for the materials and frame. The polyethylene netting is intricately woven to keep tiny fingers safe from danger.

Instead of springs, stretch bands are neatly placed within the enclosure to keep toes safe from harm. The 360-degree padded steel bar has an enclosure net that securely connects to the bottom of the ocean-themed jumping mad.

Your child will learn to jump safely, learn, and play since all products are guaranteed to meet or exceed the standards established by the ATSM.

Get it at Amazon here >

Pros

  • The trampoline is durable. Great use for children after several years.
  • The mesh encourages children to learn new skills.
  • The frame is sturdy with large jumping space.
  • Enjoy budget-friendly pricing.

Cons

  • Can take up to 40-minutes to assemble the product.
  • May need additional help with assembly.
  • The assembly parts may be difficult to maneuver.
In this video you can see the assembly process of the Skywalker Mini Trampoline. You can see what the security features the manufacturer included here.

Sportspower My First Trampoline 84 Inch...
Sportspower toddler Trampoline safety net

Sports Power: My First Trampoline

Never underestimate the power of a trampoline. Toddlers will be ready to enjoy simple gymnastics as they leap in the air, doing splits and fun cartwheels.

The young ones will be delighted with Sports Power’s My First Trampoline as they jump high in the air on a jump pad mat that is galvanized and rust-resistant.

The blue molded frame is stitched together to make it safer for your little challenging to escape the enclosure. The enclosed netting is stitched together with the spring pad.

And the foam-covered frame exterior will make it a pleasure to watch your little in the safety of your backyard.

The one thing you will not have to concern yourself with is the sun’s ultraviolet radiation that is absorbed underneath the feet. The coatings on the equipment are UV-resistant, giving your little one extra physical protection.

The stable base is connected to green molded legs for an attractive look. With 84 inches of clearance width, your toddler will be able to jump high into the sky. Get ready for hours of fun in the family backyard.

Check availability at Amazon here >

Pros

  • Trampoline can hold children up to 100 pounds.
  • Ideal for children ages 3 and up.
  • Contains padded poles.
  • Easy to assembly.

Cons

  • Popular product with limited availability.
  • The product may be able to hold more weight than officially stated.
  • Parents must frequently supervise their smallest children when they are using the equipment.

Giantex Trampoline for Kids, ASTM...
Giantex toddler Trampoline Safety Enclosure Net

Giantex Toddler Trampoline

Children between the ages of 3 and 6 will boost their confidence by exercising on this Giantex Trampoline.

Perfect for kid-sized fun, you will have no trouble supervising your children with a high enclosure net that is challenging to over jump. Toddlers will enjoy hours of fun on this blue, red, and black power machine.

The stable trampoline is reliable and robust. It has a built-in detachable design that is ideal for safe storage.

The jumping mat provides a superior leap performance that is beneficial for your toddler.

The protective padded frame will ensure the safety of your growing ones and protect their feet from invasive harm.

Children will build courage, develop balance, and increase strength with interactive play. Parents can open the front door by unzipping the apparatus for a secure entrance. The foam tube will protect your children from injury by ensuring their full safety.

For convenience, skip the local trampoline park. Bring the 55 inches of clearance space and 48 inches of height, Giantex trampoline with you for exercise and playtime with your children at parks and recreational facilities.

The weight capacity is 100 pounds, and the trampoline is easy to install.

Get it at Amazon here >

Pros

  • Galvanized surface, which is rust resistant.
  • Durable equipment that will last for years to come.
  • Easy to care and store at home.
  • Trampoline is lightweight and easy to move.
  • The product is inexpensive.

Cons

  • Can take a while to assemble the product.
  • Parts may need replacement over time.

Toddler Trampolining – Conclusion

Due to the increased number and severity of accidents and injuries caused by trampolining, children under six years are discouraged from jumping on trampolines. However, trampolining for toddlers is an excellent way of having fun, and it is very relaxing for a toddler.

Therefore, if you have a three-year-old who can’t wait to bounce up and down on that exciting trampoline, choose a suitable trampoline that is perfect for ages three to six with large safety nets. They can spend lots of time on it without showing any signs of fatigue or hunger.

There are many benefits a toddler can derive from it apart from having fun, which includes learning new skills, socializing and making new friends, and creativity and development of their growing bodies.

This opportunity should not be denied a toddler because of the high percentage of benefits and positive impacts bouncing exercising will provide for your toddler.

With strict adherence to safety precautions, rules and regulations, proper supervision, attention to trampoline manufacturer’s details, and so forth, your child will have the most fabulous fun. And you as a parent will experience full pleasure watching your little one bounce the day away.

Thanks for reading our toddler trampolining guide and feel free to drop us a comment, if you have any.

Last update on 2024-03-18 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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