My daughter is 5 and she has terrible balance. How can I help her develop better balance?

She has terrible balance. She always has. She is trying to learn to ride a bike - it is terrible. She experiences just as much difficulty on ice skates and roller skates. Is there anything I can do to help her develop this?|||have her ears checked! If there is no problem there, then yes, we found something we were able to do with one of our adopted sons who also had a real problem there. We built a 'balance beam' a few inches off the floor and helped him learn to walk it. It was just a 4 x 4 beam, as I recall, nailed on to a couple of 2 x 4 cross beams at each end. I don't remember how long it was, but maybe six feet? All the kids enjoyed playing on it. If you are worried too much about her slipping and hurting herself, put a couple of old folded up blankets on each side.



Play hopscotch with her. Play jump rope with her. Simple, easy stuff for you and me but it will be hard for her, so just do little short games.



Check her diet. Make sure she is getting enough good food. If you can, eliminate anything artificial: flavorings, colorings, preservatives... this can sometimes contribute to physical problems.



And enough sleep.



but first, get her ears checked. Not her hearing, but her ears themselves. Our main sense of balance is located in the inner ear.|||Then consult your pediatrician. Otherwise it is a matter of time and development. Keep trying but don't push so hard that she gives up. Children develop at different rates. If your concerns are such that you feel compelled to have an evaluation, a sensory integration specialist would be a good way to start. Two of the myriad of systems that develop neurologically to help us achieve control over our balance and coordination are the vestibular and proprioceptive systems. The vestibular system is balance and an innate understanding of our bodies in relation to the earth (place in space). The proprioceptive system is muscle memory that develops with repetitive motion. For example, it is how you know where things are in your car without looking.



These systems develop differently in each child. There are "windows" of development, periods of time during which you expect certain developmental stages to occur. You can find the standards in any number of books but you must also look at your own family history to see if there is a history of "late bloomers" etc.



As I have said twice already, consult a doctor or specialist if you feel your daughter is abnormally delayed. In all things, have patience. She wants to do these things badly enough without feeling that she might disappoint you by not achieving them right away.|||I do not know if this is a concern for her ears or not,but I would get a balance beem or one of those balance things you stand on and rotate on.Keep it in the house and let her keep at it.Also keep trying the things you are doing,riding a bike,skating.Sometimes they take time,it doesn't always mean that there is something medically wrong with her.

I know lots of clumsy,smart,healthy people.

Enroll her in gymnastics or a tumbling class.|||After you confirm there's no inner ear problem (or any other medical problem) which might cause this...enroll your daughter into dance/ballet classes. Not only will she develop coordination..but also confidence.



Another option might be gymnastic or martial arts classes.



My experience though was with dance classes, as my daughter took 15 years of dance classes (ballet, jazz, tap, and modern) before she went to college for it and she now teaches little ones herself.|||I鈥檓 no expert, so here are some links to some websites.



Bike riding:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/teachride.ht鈥?/a>

http://www.ibike.org/education/teaching-鈥?/a>



Inline Skating:

http://www.iisa.org/icp/kids.html



Ice Skating:

http://www.iceskatingworld.com/parents/q鈥?/a>|||Hi. As a Choreographer i learned years ago that the core for balancing the body can be achieved by dancing ballet.

Dancing in general can help also the health of the body and the energy is amazing. Basically dancing it better then almost any activity (what i think any way).

Register her to a few classes and look at the results.





Have a great dancing day|||I agree. You should have her ears checked. After that...go to the park and play balancing games with her. Walk an imaginary tight rope! Walk on a path of rocks. Have a contest to see who can stand on one foot the longest (let her win a few times)|||Try a scooter (the 2-wheeled kind) before working on riding a 2-wheel bike. I really think that helped my kids gain confidence in their balance.|||Have her ears checked.