Would you let your 4 year old ride...

[mermaidhair]

Originally Posted by RobertWestwood

there is always an exit just before these rides where a little un (or an old un) takes fright and wants out

See more...

I took that exit 22 years ago, and even worse I wouldn't let my poor sister ride either in case something happened to her and I was left all alone in Florida (I was 15!), so I am determined to ride it now that I am finally returning all these years later! However for the same reasons, I feel I can't force my 5 and 8 year olds to ride, though that would mean I have to go on my own!

[Mallky555]

My ds rode it at 4 😱 not my decision I hate that ride he had been told when he is big enough he could ride
So of course he was finally big enough to ride it and off he went with his big sisters as both me and dh hate it o was a nervous wreck. They were gone ages and the little ≈≈≈≈≈≈ cried when it finished as he was anted to go again so they did it 3 times 😱 all the while I was telling dh what bad parents we were

[rachelhelen82]

I took DS on this when he was four, I loved it, he hated it

Last year, when he was 9, he agreed to give it another go as long as he didn't have to watch the pre-show as this is what he thinks scared him the first time. We got to the front of the queue, avoided the pre-show, sat down on the seats and fastened our seat belts before he announced he just couldn't do it and we both left via the exit!

[Nimbus]

Originally Posted by chmurf

kids look up to their parents.

If you are afraid that they might be scared, they will feel it, no matter how well you try to hide it. And they will get scared and unwilling to go.
And if you insist, then they'll wonder why you try to talk them into riding a ride you're scared to let them ride ... think how confused a 4 year old will get.

at the end of the day, they're *old enough* to decide for themselves.

See more...

First, it's true in some cases that kids will pick up on how the parents are feeling and react to that. But that's certainly not true all the time. The parents can be quite happy for the child to go on the ride but the child just might not like it. Like adults, kids have a mind of their own and their own opinions, likes and dislikes.

We took our DD to see Philharmagic not thinking in the slightest that she'd be scared by it. It was just another movie (albeit 3D) after all. But after 1 minute she was scared and wanted to leave. Similarly, when DD was older we took her onto the Simpsons ride (one of my favourite rides) - she was a big fan of the Simpsons on TV so we thought she'd love the ride. But, surprisingly, the first time she rode it she hated it. (On the other hand, she liked Men In Black, even though we thought she might not like it).

Second, I certainly wouldn't say that a 4 year old is old enough to decide things for themself. There's a reason why parents are responsible for children, even children much older than 4. I mean, if we allowed kids to decide everything for themselves they'd be eating sweets and chocolate for breakfast.