Our guy was very busy and distractable and I didn't really like the idea of giving him an expensive stick (bow) to run around with, so we did wait until he was 5 1/2 so he had a bit more self-contol to start. But there are many kids who start younger and do fine. They will often start the little ones with a fake violin so that they can practice how to hold and take care of it. When they prove they can, then they give them the real thing.
Somewhere there is a balance in the practice amount and intensity. I see some parents who are too intense and get really freaked out that if there kid doesn't practice hard every day they will never play well. Many of these families seem to burn out after a few years and their kids come to hate playing. On the other end, the parents who do not convey their own commitment and are too wishy washy also tend to have kids that give up. We shot for a middle ground of "good enough" which for us was some practice most days. Sometimes that was only working on one thing he needed to for 5 minutes. Other times it was listening to the CD and extra time instead of playing. Some days, he might practice for 15 minutes. Often I felt like we weren't taking it seriously enough especially when I met the really intense parents. But 7 years into it, most of the "intense" families have dropped by the wayside and our DS is still going strong. 5 minutes a day for 7 years adds up to a lot of practice! The key is that it something ought to happen almost every day, but it doesn't have to be a big part of every day. Does that make sense?
