Skiing With Kids: Expert Tips for Ski Parents

The ski season may be winding down, but what you do now with your gear determines how next season starts. In this episode, Jessica — PSIA-certified ski instructor and mom of five — walks ski parents through a complete end-of-season gear care routine: from storage wax for your skis to washing and drying all your soft gear before it goes in a bin. Whether you're teaching kids to ski or just try...

Most ski parents pack up at the end of the season and try to reconstruct where their kids left off come October, and that gap costs them days on the mountain every single year. In this episode, Jessica shares the end-of-season assessment she uses both as a PSIA-certified ski instructor and as a ski parent herself, so you can capture exactly where your kids are while it's still fresh. If you&a...

Episode Summary: The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina just wrapped up, and  and ski instructor and mom of five Jessica Averett was watching with a very specific lens. In this episode, Jessica pulls four powerful lessons from the Games and translates them directly into practical, usable advice for ski parents at every level. From Chloe Kim's mentorship of Gaon Choi, to Federica Brignone&...

Episode Summary Skiing with kids is expensive — and buying the wrong season pass can cost your family hundreds of dollars before you ever click into a binding. In this episode, Jessica Averett, a PSIA-certified ski instructor and ski mom of five, breaks down the four major multi-resort passes (Ikon, Epic, Mountain Collective, and Indy) so you can stop guessing and start skiing with a real plan. Sh...

Episode Summary One of the biggest mistakes ski parents make is pushing kids onto harder terrain before they're actually ready — and it can undo months of progress in a single run. In this episode, Jessica Averett breaks down exactly how to know when your child is ready to move up, from the bunny hill all the way to black diamonds. She walks through five key questions every ski parent should...

Episode Summary If you've ever stood on a bunny slope repeating "make a pizza!" while your kid stares at you blankly, this episode is going to change your next ski day. Jessica breaks down the Edgie Wedgie — a $12 ski tip connector that she's carried in her jacket pocket for 17 years — and explains exactly why it's one of the most effective tools for skiing with kids under...

If you've been skiing with kids in the middle of winter and wondering why it feels so hard, this episode is going to change how you plan your ski season. Jessica breaks down exactly why spring is the single best time of year for a ski parent to take their family to the mountain — and what you need to do differently to make the most of it. What You'll Learn Why spring conditions — softer...

If you've ever had a ski day fall apart before lunch and couldn't figure out why, this episode is for you. Jessica — PSIA-certified ski instructor and mom of five — breaks down altitude sickness: what it is, why it hits kids especially hard, and how every ski parent can prepare for it before setting foot on the mountain. Skiing with kids at elevation requires more planning than most fami...

You just paid for ski lessons for your kid — now what? In this episode of Skiing with Kids, Jessica breaks down the seven questions every ski parent should ask their child's instructor at pickup, and why skipping this five-minute conversation means leaving the most valuable part of the lesson behind. If you want to actually teach kids to ski — not just survive the day — this is where it start...

If you've ever squeezed in one more run and watched the whole day fall apart, this episode is for you. Jessica — ski instructor of 20 years and mom of five — breaks down why knowing when to stop is the single most underrated skill in skiing with kids, and why the ski parent who leaves early is often the one raising a lifelong skier. This isn't about doing less. It's about understand...

If you've ever had a ski day fall apart before 10am, this episode is for you. Jessica breaks down why the first hour of the ski day is the single biggest factor in how the day goes — and why this is true whether your kids are brand new to skiing or already ripping down black diamonds. Every ski parent needs to hear this one. What You'll Learn Why rushing through the morning is the #1 mis...

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-...

In this episode of Skiing with Kids, host Jessica, the parent ski expert, explains why the first three days on skis can shape a child’s entire relationship with skiing . These early days aren’t really about technique. They’re about building comfort, confidence, and a sense that the mountain is a place where they belong. In this episode, Jessica shares how pressure, complicated gear, and pushing ki...

There's a two-second window on the mountain when your child quietly decides whether skiing is going to be their thing — and most ski parents have no idea it's happening. In this episode, Jessica breaks down the exact psychology behind that moment, why it has nothing to do with ski technique, and what you can do to make sure it lands the right way. Whether you're brand new to skiing...

When your child refuses to ski, it's easy to feel frustrated, defeated, or just plain confused — especially when you've been looking forward to the day. In this episode, I share my 4-step rescue plan for turning a resistant skier around, drawing from both her 20 years as a professional ski instructor and her own real moments of struggle with her five kids. She walks through why kids push...

If you've ever had a ski day fall completely apart and had no idea why, this episode is for you. Jessica Averett, a certified ski instructor with 20 years of experience and mom of five, breaks down the 7 most common mistakes ski parents make when skiing with kids, and exactly what to do differently. Whether you're brand new to family skiing or you've been at it for years, understand...