Skiing With Kids: Expert Tips for Ski Parents
Teaching kids to ski doesn't have to be a battle of wills at the top of a run, a meltdown in the lift line, or a day that ends with everyone in tears — including you.
Welcome to Skiing with Kids, the podcast for every ski parent who wants to raise kids who genuinely love the mountain. I'm Jessica Averett, a professional ski expert with over 20 years of experience teaching kids to ski, a mom of five kids I taught to ski before age three, and someone who has spent two decades watching families transform their ski days from stressful to spectacular.
Whether you're trying to teach kids to ski for the very first time, troubleshoot why your six-year-old suddenly hates skiing, or figure out how to actually enjoy a ski day instead of just surviving it — this is your show.
Each episode, I'm bringing you real, practical, been-there-done-that advice on skiing with kids at every age and stage. We'll dig into ski technique, gear that actually works, how to handle the hard days on the mountain, resort tips, and the mindset shifts that make all the difference when you're a ski parent trying to raise confident little skiers.
No fluff. No generic advice. Just honest, expert guidance from someone who has taught thousands of kids to ski and raised five of her own — and knows that the best ski days of your family's life are absolutely possible.
This is Skiing with Kids. Let's get your family on the mountain.
Skiing With Kids: Expert Tips for Ski Parents
The Science of Fear: What Ski Parents Get Wrong
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In this episode of Skiing with Kids, your host Jessica Averett, a ski instructor and mom of five with 20 years’ experience, explains that kids’ ski fear is often accidentally created by well intended parents on the mountain.
This happens through co-regulation: children under about 10 read safety from parents’ tone, micro-expressions, and body tension more than words. She outlines five common fear-installers: using a panic voice, taking kids on terrain that’s too hard too soon (violating her “boring rule” that confidence builds when tasks feel easy and automatic), pushing for “one more run” (the peak-end rule), praising bravery instead of skill (which implies danger), and showing parental anxiety (which sets a regulation ceiling).
She recommends calm instructional tone, staying on easy terrain longer, stopping before fatigue, practicing falling, normalizing wobble as recovery, and detaching ego to play the long game, then mentions her parent-focused program, First Tracks.
00:00 Welcome and Big Idea
01:15 Meltdown on the Slope
02:25 Kids Aren't Born Afraid
03:12 Co Regulation Explained
05:21 Panic Voice Problem
06:59 Terrain Too Hard Too Soon
08:29 One More Run Trap
09:41 Stop Praising Bravery
11:34 Your Anxiety Sets Ceiling
12:53 Architecture of Confidence
14:43 Beyond Skiing Check Signal
15:45 First Tracks Invitation
16:58 Final Reminder and Goodbye
Skiing with Kids is hosted by Jessica Averett, a ski instructor and mom of five who has spent more than 20 years helping kids learn to ski. This podcast helps parents create calmer, happier ski days by focusing on confidence, connection, and simple strategies that actually work with kids on the mountain. She's the founder of First Tracks: A Parent's Guide to Teaching Kids to Ski, a course that walks parents through everything they need to know to skip overpriced ski school and confidently teach their own kids to ski.
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More Skiing with Kids Resources
For more tips, gear reviews, and ski parenting advice visit Skiing Kids
You can find me on Instagram @theadventuretravelfam
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Free Guide for Ski Parents
Want to avoid the biggest mistakes most parents make when teaching their kids to ski?
Download the free guide:
The Most Common Mistakes Ski Parents Make (and How to Fix Them)
https://skiiingkids.myflodesk.com/ffy45squub
This quick guide will help you avoid the common ski day meltdowns and create a much smoother experience for your kids on the mountain.