Do they need slide gloves?
As a parent, you just forked out $200 to $400 on the longboard and now they want all the extras: helmet, kneepads, slide gloves etc.
You want to know if they are necessary or you are getting played.
Helmet = yes. Essential. If you child wants one, buy it. They can wear a bike helmet, they essentially do the same thing.
If you are a longboarder: the two next important pieces of safety are knee pads and slide gloves.
There are two ways to stop a longbaord safely. Footbrake or sliding. If they footbrake, they will wear out their shoes very fast, so a lot of times slide gloves saves money in less shoe replacement. A shut down slide is a very effective way of stopping. It will keep your child safer longboard sliding and it will stop them putting holes in their shoes.
Longboarders wear safety gear like knee pads so they can skate every day. They do a slide, board stops suddenly, they get thrown forwards and they slide on their hands and knees. If they have gloves and knee pads then they slide and no injuries. if they don't have knee pads they usually get gravel rash or bloody knees. The usual result is a grumpy skater stuck in the house for a few days while they recover. If you want your little longboarder outside, skating, out of the house every day - get them knee pads :-)