Tramploine for Six Year Old Birthday Along with Young Siblings

We have a four yr old and almost 2 yr old and our kids love the trampoline. The more kids you have jumping at the same time, the more chance that someone could get hurt, but if you watch them closely, I think they are great. Kids do better with only a few at a time on there, and with kids approximately they same size. A bigger kid can really launch a little kid accidentally, so we let our four yr old get on with just his sister when no one is over, but we don't let her on there with him if he is up there with his friends. You need to teach them basic safety things at first, we tell our son not to bounce right next to his sister etc. and he knows if he doesn't follow the rules he won't be allowed to jump. When you get too many kids, the chances of head collisions and other bumps is greater, so depending on the size of the trampoline you get, limit the number of kids on there at once. With just one kid at a time, I think they are really safe, with every kid you add, you increase the chance for injury. My husband and I even get up there with the kids. It is great exercise, but it is hard not to be sent flying if you catch someone else's bounce. If you are going to have different age groups at the party, I would recommend a timer, so you can give the older kids five minutes, then the younger kids 5 minutes etc. That way, they know when the timer goes off it is time to get down etc. Definitely get an enclosure, and make sure they actually zip it while they are in it. We have had ours for two years now, it gets used year round and we love it. My kids ask to jump almost every day and I like that they are getting all that exercise. Just a safety note, we keep a lock on ours so the kids can't get on it without permission (and it also keeps any neighbors kids from trying it out when we aren't home)

If you get the net I wouldn't worry about it too much, lots of people I know have them and I haven't heard of any accidents happening yet (which of course does not mean they can't happen, but net should protect against most things.)

H.,
I don't have a tramploine and my kids asked for one for years and I won't budge on it. Aside from the huge number of kids who are sent to the emergency room each year,( my mom is the head nurse of an ER in Oregon) a neighbor that we had when my husband and I lived in Oregon had one for there daughter (who was 12 or 13) and by the time she was 15 she had blown out her left knee and had to have major knee surgery (there doctor said that it was caused by to much tramploine use and basiclly wore out her knee). I think that if you want to get one for your kids you should, but I would take all the precautions that you can also if you own your home talk with your insurance agent and make sure that you have enough coverage in case someone elses child gets hurt on it. Good luck
Amanda

ARRRRRGH! The "T" word! When my son was four he was at a neighbor's house bouncing on a trampoline with several other kids, "Ring Around the Rosie" kind of thing, when "they all fell down" he was on the bottom and someone stepped on his leg, right in the middle of his shin and broke both bones. Of course, no one knew, they were telling him he was OK, etc. but finally his dad took him to the hospital since he wouldn't walk and was crying (I wasn't there, got a phone call to come to emergency.) As if this wasn't bad enough, it was the first week of December so I had to deal with this trying to prepare for Christmas. They didn't set his leg for three days, during that time he was on Codeine pain medicine that made him hallucinate, it also made him constipated, he was screaming day and night, and would not sit on the toilet because it make his leg hurt worse. He NEVER got used to walking with crutches so we had to carry him or wagon-ride him everywhere for 6 weeks... That's MY horror story. If you look up info on the net about trampolines, you'll probably find many more like mine. I know they're very high on the list of reasons for visits to the emergency room. I don't know what the official "rules" are for using one, but if you decide to get one, make sure it has the netting around the sides and stick to the rules as stated by the manufacturer, to a "T"! 1 or 2 of the same sized kid, keeping space between them, locked when no adult is around, and someone right there to supervise, all the time. There's danger in everything. As with bikes/helmets, crossing the street in the crosswalk, climbing trees, kids need exercise, fresh air, etc. Just BE CAREFUL! Good luck!

We have triplet daughters who are 8-1/2 yrs old now. They have had their trampoline without a net enclosure since they were 6 and they have done very well with it. They have friends over all the time and spend lots of time jumping and laying on it and talking with their friends on their tramp. I never had a tramp when I was a child however, I grew up with 3 tramps in my neighborhood and spent many hours jumping with my friends. I don't recall any accidents either. You do have to be near when the kids are jumping, I'm usually in my kitchen so I can keep a close eye on the kids or just doing yard work near by. I would recommend that you get a tramp cover if you're going to leave the tramp up all year long and cover it in winter months when its not used so much. I wish you many happy years of jumping. And don't let the negatives from people get you too down as there is a lot of positives for the trampoline.

It's not necessarily the net that makes the trampoline safe or unsafe. It's the actual jumping. My niece, at the age of 4 broke her leg when she was jumping with an older child - age 8. There was a net. It was a case of accidently being double bounced. I have wanted to get a trampoline for my sons. We loved our growing up. If you google trampoline safety you can get a lot of information. I've read that the round ones are the best because of the positioning of the springs. I don't think you will want to buy a cheaper one - like the ones at Toys R Us. Look into quality ones - like the ones the gyms use. More expensive but will last a lifetime!