Today, I am going share how to teach your kids to surf without tears, yelling, or fighting.
It’s been a long journey, but my nine year old daughter is now catching her own waves out the back on a fiberglass 4’10” shortboard.
So if you’ve always wanted your kids to learn to surf and be able to surf with you, you’ll love the actionable steps in this post.
Let’s Dive Right In…
If you want to teach your kids to surf, It’s About the Journey, Not the Destination
“How did you get your daughter to surf? My kid won’t go near a board, he’s too scared!”
Asked an old friend from Surfing Mums that I bumped into in the water.
Not infrequently, parents ask me how I’ve taught my nine year old to paddle out the back with me and catch waves. For any parent, teaching your kids to surf is a process with ups and downs.
My daughter and I have got through the tough times because we are a team. We’ve built a strong foundation of communication and trust that allows me to encourage her to push her boundaries and confront her fear.
Yes, she gets scared.
Yes, she tells me “no, no, no, no” as I push her into a big wave which she catches and rides to the shore.
Yes, there are days when she doesn’t want to surf.
But every single time we surf together, she comes out happier than she started. You probably already get the power of salt water and your kids will too as long as they feel safe, supported, and free. The following are the rules I suggest you follow when you begin to teach your kids to surf.
6 Rules for Teaching Children to Surf
1. Let Them Lead
This is a hard one for me. When she was younger I often felt like I was pushing a rock up a hill to get her in the water. However, I learned to cool my demanding ways and ask her if she wants to surf and explain the conditions. If it’s onshore or too big, she’s tired, or her wetsuit is wet, I stopped pushing so hard. If the conditions are perfect – 1-3 foot, not too dumpy, not too crowded – I would try convince her and remind her that she’s always happier when she’s been in the ocean. From five to eight years old, my aim was to get her in the water 1-2 days per week during the winter and more in the summer. The key was that she gets in the water, that means boogie boarding, body surfing, or frolicking counts.
As she has gotten older, I don’t have to convince her anymore. She is out there at the drop of a hat. We’ve also been able to set surfing goals together. Last year we created a plan which we called, “the Over the Hump Project,” in which her goals were to be able to duck-dive, catch waves on her own, do a cut back, and a bottom turn. She has reached each one of those goals in less than a year!
2. Teach Them to Be Strong Swimmers + Have Ocean Knowledge
If you wish your child would surf more or if he or she has stood up a few times but not really caught the bug, don’t fret. Make sure they are in swimming lessons or nippers/junior guards. For many families in Australia, swimming lessons are non-negotiable and I think that’s so cool. If you want your child to be a surfer eventually, make sure they can swim very well.
When you are at the beach, take time to explain where the rips are and how the break works before they play in the surf. Teach your kids how to do a proper surf check. My 4 year old can tell you the tide by looking at the beach. My 9 year old daughter has learned to read a beach for a rip and a channel to paddle out through because we are constantly pointing them out. I always ask her to show me the rip. We sit and watch the waves all the time and point out left and right peaks. She can navigate the ocean better than many adults.
3. Make Surfing Comfortable and Easy
On a recent trip to the Gold Coast my daughter fell in love with surfing… again. You see, where we live in Sydney it’s mid-winter. 16 degrees celsius (62 Fahrenheit) may not be as bone chilling as a spring day in Southern California, but it still freezes a skinny little kid like a popsicle. For her, a sunny day in her 4/3 on the Gold Coast felt like Hawaii.
The point is that kids get cold easily and if they are uncomfortable, they aren’t going to enjoy their session very much. Both of my kids wear 4/3s most of the year in Sydney. My eldest has been wearing booties in the mornings when the pavement is extra cold. I highly recommend finding a decent 4/3 for winter. You’ll find they will stay out much longer and have more beach play days in the winter. For under 6s, Quiksilver makes the only 4/3 I’ve found. For older kids, we’ve used Rip Curl because they carry a 4/3 with a neck zip and booties in kids size 13!
Another way to make them comfortable is to put yourself in the best position to help them in the water. At the beginning, you will be standing in the shallows pushing them into white wash. Once they graduate to unbroken waves, get a pair of DaFin’s and wear them so (a) you don’t drown, (b) you can swim in quickly and help them if they are caught inside, (c)you can push them around the break to the best spot. After they become competent paddlers and are at least trying to duck dive, you can start to paddle a board out yourself. Some days it works and others I get worked in the shorey with my board tombstoning behind me as I duck dive her through wave after wave.
Make sure your kids are comfortable and that you make the whole experience easy. Help them turn their wetsuit right side out, put their leash on, and get into a hot shower as quickly as possible after they surf. It’s difficult sometimes, but try not to make the kids’ experience hardcore!
4. Hype It UP!
Whenever we surf a certain break up the beaches a bit, it means we’re stopping at the Captain’s Shop. The Captain’s Shop is one of the old school corner shops that sells bread, eggs, baklava, and 40 different types of gummies in ziplock bags. The kids froth on going to Captain’s Shop after their surf so it doesn’t matter how cold, windy, or dumpy the surf is, they are in!
Another non-sugary way to hype a session is to get their friends involved. If your friends are surfers, chances are they will want their kids to surf. The more crew you can get to the beach, the easier it is to get your kids in the water!
The last thing that works wonders for my daughter’s surfing and philanthropic values is doing a fundraising event like Make a Wave, where she surfs everyday in September each year for a good cause. I am stoked because we surf everyday and she learns about giving back to those less fortunate than us!
5. Outsource When Necessary
Yes, surfing is an amazing thing to share with your child. However, sometimes your desires can get in the way of the child learning and developing a lifelong passion. Like so many other things about adulting, sometimes it is better to outsource. Our local surf school does group lessons that are perfect for absolute beginners – they have boards, wetsuits, and most importantly they are not you. Your child is much less likely to throw a tantrum and kick sand at their teenage surf instructor. They are also more likely to listen. Responsible young surfers in your community can also be good to hire to assist the learning process. They can help a beginner level pushing them into waves or even paddle out with them when your child is a bit more skilled.
6. Get The Right Board for Learning and Progressing
Just like choosing the right surfboard for an adult, getting the right board for your kid can be tricky. My daughter was 5 when she got her first board and was very tiny with exceptionally good balance. She started on a 5’6” Mick Fanning Soft Top with a soft-fin thruster set up. This board was perfect for her, but would not suit every young kid. Many of her friends needed bigger soft-tops in the 6 to 8 foot range that were more stable. A boogie board is great for kids of all ages to really feel what it is like to catch their own waves. My daughter actually got her first boogie board after her first surfboard because she wanted to be able to ride waves on her own. Also, no rush to move to a fiberglass board until they’ve mastered the foamy – this could take a couple of years!
If you want to teach your kids to surf, you must REMEMBER, SURFING IS SUPPOSED TO BE FUN
Surfing is not easy. Think back to when you learned to surf… Those first rides may have got you hooked, but it was a long, tough journey to where you are now. We love the ocean because it is so humbling in so many ways. Imagine being a little kid. The ocean can be a scary place, especially when a parent with heaps of expectations is barking orders at you. You can use the same tips and process you use for tackling fear to teach your kids to stay calm in the water,
The key is to be patient and set up an environment that is fun, feels safe, and not too difficult. Surfing is a lifetime sport so set up your child’s journey to be positive for the long haul. If you can do that, you can teach your kid to surf and love surfing for life.
Did I miss anything?
Now I’d like to hear from you!
Which rule do you think would help your child learn to surf?
Or maybe I didn’t mention something that helped you teach your kids to surf?
Either way, let me know in the comments.
FAQ
When Can Kids Start Surfing?
Children can start surfing as young as two, but for toddlers and preschoolers, it is more about getting them comfortable in the water. When they are small, use a flotation vest and only take them out in very safe conditions. Think tiny little broken waves that break close to shore. At about five years old, both of my kids were competent enough swimmers that they could tread water if they fell off their board so we started surfing more regularly in the whitewash at five. By seven, my daughter was being pushed into waves on a fiberglass board out the back on 2-3 foot days. By nine, she could catch her own waves.
Should You Teach Your Child to Surf or Should You Get them surf Lessons?
This depends on your skill level and proficiency in the water. If you don’t have a lot of surf experience or are a beginner yourself, get your child a few surf lessons. Watch what the instructors to do to ensure your kid is safe and having fun. When you are on your own, look for easy rolling waves that are less than waist high. You can even ask a lifeguard where is the best place to take them out if you live on a beach with lots of rip currents.
How Surf Many Lessons Will Your Child Need to Learn to Surf?
How long is a string? A child should be able to stand up during their first lesson. If you want to get them out the back and onto green waves, I would suggest surfing as much as possible with you and occasionally having a few lessons with a professional surf instructor.
What kind of board should my child learn on?
Start with a foam board. Get a foamy that is big enough that the child can stand up easily and glide across the surface without lots of wobbling or falling off. My four year old son will ride a 8’0″ foamy from Costco and have the time of his life. Volume is every beginner surfer’s friend including the groms. As they progress, get a smaller, fish outline foam board that still supports their weight without a lot of effort. Make sure it has 3, flexy fins (kids really struggle on twin fins). Once they have mastered the shorter foamie, you can consider moving to a fiberglass board. Move on slowly to lower volume boards – you want to them to catch as many waves as possible.