any advice to help child learn to ride?

[kie_fujo]

my 8 year old dd still can't ride her bike. i have tried and tried and she is just so afraid of getting hurt. i really want to help her learn, but my patience is wavering. any advice?

[spokewench]

Have you tried it on the grass where the likelihood of getting hurt is not as harsh?

Has she ridden with training wheels? That's a good start also.

Finally, sometimes a role model is just what kids need - can you show her how it is done in a non-threatening soft grassy environment? Put gloves on her, elbow pads, a helmet and tell her she is as safe as can be

[maillotpois]

Borrow a bike that is WAY too small for her so her feet touch the ground and let her get a feel for how to balance, etc. That's what we did and it worked great.

[Eden]

Do you have a cycling friend that can help you? I've did a learn to ride workshop - one of the things they told us was that having another adult who was not the parent sometimes helps....

they also advocated a no training wheels approach.

First the child should learn to balance the moving bike - so training wheels off, pedals off, and saddle all of the way down - the kid should be able to put his/her feet flat on the ground. With the bike this way have the child push the bike with their feet - when they get comfortable with pushing around, have them push off and glide. This get them used to balancing a moving bike without having to try to pay attention to pedaling yet.

When the child gets comfortable gliding and balancing the bike then its time to add the pedals back on. Keep the saddle low for the time being. It's not like they are going to be riding for long amounts of time or distance at this point so they are not going to hurt themselves by riding an ill fitting bike.

[singletrackmind]

I am working on teaching JB (5) as Eden describes. His bike has coaster brakes so we had to be careful of hills because he couldn't stop without pedals. We're up to pedals back on, seat high enough to pedal comfortably yet still touch the ground easily, and a bar I've attached to the back so I can hold the bike while he pedals. I only keep him from crashing, he has to balance and, unless he's going to get hurt, stop himself. He's gotten to where I can take my hands off the bar (but keep them close to grab it when needed) for several seconds. Usually he doesn't even notice I'm not hanging on. It's going ok.:)

[sarahkonamojo]

Taking pedals off is key. No training wheels.

The idea is that the rider just pushes the bike along and learns to balance on two wheels. When she is ready you can add pedals.

There are actual bikes made this way, i.e. the Strider. They have no drive train and no pedals.

sarah

[Irulan]

Taking pedals off is key. No training wheels.

The idea is that the rider just pushes the bike along and learns to balance on two wheels. When she is ready you can add pedals.

There are actual bikes made this way, i.e. the Strider. They have no drive train and no pedals.

sarah

yep and just make sure the seat is low enough so that they can put their feet down.

training wheels are the devil.

[spokewench]

I do not believe that training wheels are the devil. It gives kids a chance to get used to being on the bike, using the pedal brake, and being comfortable before they have to do the whole thing together at once. It gives them a chance to get into riding without as much fear and with more confidence. Then they have to leave that behind but that is the way of learning new things.

[kie_fujo]

that's what we have been doing. the whole no pedals thing. but she is still terrified. she will pick her feet up just a touch and start screaming as soon as she teeters. our grass is so bumpy that i think that would almost be worse! thanks for the suggestions though.

[Irulan]

I see a lot of kids become overly dependent on them and then fearful of taking them off. I also see that the small bike-no pedals-feet touching the ground facilitates learning without training wheels for many many kids.

just my two cents, you can do it any way you want.

[bike4ever]

kie_fujo -

Kids will ride when their friends are riding. Unfortunately it's the beginning of peer pressure. I

s there a small grassy hill near you? A small hill is a nice place to practice the balance. I also am a fan of using a baseball field. You can push them (but remember to release, do not hold them) and let them glide easily on the dirt. A baseball field is also a nice place for them to learn to pedal since it is actually easier to pedal through than a yard.

[Biciclista]

When she's ready she will ride. At 7, I was hysterical, terrified of the bike, the training, the training wheels, everything. At 9, my father gave me a 2 wheeled bike; rode it in a circle, gave it to me, and I rode it in a circle. Just like that.
Be patient.
It will come.

[GLC1968]

I agree with the peer pressure thing. I remember being terrified of riding a 'two wheeler'. (I had a tricycle, but felt I was too old for it). I remember talking to one of the older kids in the neighborhood one afternoon about my fear. She said she could teach me but I said no. Then one of the kids a little closer to my age went tearing by on a BMX type bike and jumped the curb in front of us. She leaned over and said "I taught him to ride". Two days later, I asked her to help me. Based on where we were living (and when we moved), I couldn't have been older than 7.

[kie_fujo]

i was actually hoping that the peer pressure would wear on her!! haha. the one and only time. unfortunately she doesn't care. she just says that she wants training wheels. i know she'll get it eventually. i just want us to be able to ride together!

[Irulan]

What about just "disappearing" the training wheels.

I"m sorry honey, I don't know what happened to them.

[Biciclista]

Wait, she LIKES the training wheels? Why can't she keep them?
She'll get tired of them eventually.

[Becky]

Are these the height-adjustable training wheels? What about raising them a hair at a time until she's balancing on her own?

Just a thought....I don't have kids, so I dunno.

[Grits]

Been there. My youngest son is extremely cautious and did not learn to ride without training wheels until he was at least 8. What did the trick for us was taking the bike on a beach vacation where it was nice and flat. We were in an area with paved paths right in front of our house, and it was easy for him to hop on the bike and try to ride it.

I don't know how practical that is for you. You probably can't pick up and go to the beach right now, but the key was flat and paved. If you can find a place that is convenient (a school track?) and let her go at her own pace, maybe that would help.

In our case, peer pressure was making him motivated get rid of the training wheels.

[mupedalpusher]

I was hired this summer by a woman who wanted me to teach her 8 yr old niece to ride without training wheels. She learned in 1 hr 15 minutes! I remembered my LCI trainer telling me he could teach anyone to ride in an hour. He suggested taking off the pedals, putting down the seat and learn to glide first. I couldn't get the pedals off her bike (plus she had coaster brakes) so we just put her seat down and spent the first hour gliding. I left and went back in a few days and after she showed me how well she was gliding, I had her put her feet up on the pedals and coast. After two trips down the street (slightly downhill which helped), I had her pedal and she did very well. I left the seat down so she always had the ability to put her feet down if she felt in trouble.
My nephew is nearly 7 and won't even try and he throws a fit if you mention it (of course he throws a fit at everything but that's beside the point). She will need to cooperate and want to learn or it won't work. Our daughter asked to take off her training wheels at 3 yrs old and she learned in about 15 minutes whereas our very head strong son didn't learn until he was 5.
If she's willing, give it a try.

[kie_fujo]

the bike she has now did not come with training wheels and we got some to put on it but they did not support her enough. they kept moving and she fell. and she has never had to learn to balance the bike because she has always had training wheels. i even told her i would buy her a new bike if she learned to ride! that kinda got her wanting to, but still won't get on it. even with me right there holding on to the bike so there is no way she'd fall, she is scared. she'll get over it i know. i just wish i had attempted this sooner!

[Tuckervill]

When she's 46 and riding her bike on extended bike tours, what difference will it make that she learned today or in a year?

What will make a difference is whether she had happy memories of her mother helping her to learn to ride at her own pace, or whether she remembers being terrified and being forced to try before she was ready. Could make her never want to ride at all.

Karen

[hirakukibou]

Check out the method section of this website.

www.bicycyleridingschool.org

good luck.

hirakukibou

[tulip]

My nephew was scared at first, so my brother just let him call the shots. When he (nephew) was ready, he decided and it was on his terms.

I'd say let her be and don't push it. Drop the whole topic and let her decide when she's ready, as it is apparently a source of alot of stress and pressure at the moment.

[kie_fujo]

i totally agree. i wouldn't force her to. that's why we are at a standstill. just waiting for her to be ok with it. that's why i was asking for advice to maybe entice her and make her more comfortable.

[tulip]

i totally agree. i wouldn't force her to. that's why we are at a standstill. just waiting for her to be ok with it. that's why i was asking for advice to maybe entice her and make her more comfortable.

I'm saying stop trying to entice her. Do other things and forget the bike. When she's ready, she'll let you know. Best of luck!

[kie_fujo]

i understand what yr saying. and i don't really bring it up. she loved this bike we saw and i told her she needed to learn to ride first, before i invested more money in another bike. but that's about it. i'll ask occasionally if she wants to try and if she says no then that's the end of it. and soon winter will be here so it won't even be an option.

[SouthernBelle]

I think often a parent should find someone else to teach a child this sort of thing. I remember my father teaching me how to drive. :eek: :(

On the other hand, I was the one who taught my nephew how to jump then dive off a diving board. Not that I was gifted at it, but he and I snuck off from everybody else and did it. Then he presented it as a fait accompli (sp?).

[wildhawk]

Put a small rack on the back of her bike - I remember when I was little my Mom bought me and my older sister identical full-size bikes. My sister was taller and learned to ride hers first. But I was too short for mine so I would run alongside it and try and keep up with my peddling sister. My Mom threatened to sell my bike if I did not learn to ride it. My neighbor saw me running with this obviously too tall bike and offered my brother her granddaughters bike to use to teach me. It was the perfect height and it had a rack on the rear. My brother put me on the bike and coached me to pedal while he was holding the bike upright with his hand on the rack. We went around the driveway several times and I was peddling like crazy while trotted along behind helping me balance. He then let go of the rack and I was balancing and riding on my own. I have seen a product at Walmart that consists of a large u-shaped handle and it bolts onto the rear of the bike - that looks like it would work the same way that rear rack did. Good luck and be patient. My Mom wasn’t with me, but thank goodness my brother was. She will be riding along with you in no time.

[Iris616]

Can you rent a "tag along" bike for a day or a week? We rented one on vacation this summer for my 5YO. It did wonders for her self esteem, and got her excited to ride faster. The one we rented was a Giant, and it wouldn't tip over. When we came back from vacation, there was a significant improvement in her balance and confidence levels. She learned to go with out training wheels the next weekend.

One word of caution.. The tagalong really affected my balancing abilities, so I had her go with my husband, who is much bigger and stronger than me.

[Aggie_Ama]

I didn't learn to ride a bike until I was almost 9 and not for lack of trying by my parents, neighbors, brother, etc.... One day I just said to myself "I want to try again", hopped on my friends bike and it worked. My mom said she almost dropped the phone when my baby sitter called her to say "Peej you will never believe it, Amanda is riding a bike. You might want to get hers fixed up finally". My parents did better than that, they saw me and doing it and I got a brand new bike. :D

Sometimes kids have to go at their pace. I was slow learning to tie my shoes, walk, ride a bike, swim. I am not slow mentally but with physical things it is always on my time table not anyone elses! :p

[kie_fujo]

we actually have a tag a long and that was my hope that it would help her become confident and gain some feeling for it. we'll see. she is somewhat afraid of it as well, but she does have fun once she's on.

[vinbek]

I think making sure she can put her feet down is key. Once she knows that all she has to do is put a foot down, she will feel more secure. My kids learned from their Dad. They didn't want to listen to me. We went to the local school and rode on the grass field. We all took our bikes and had fun. We ignored the one trying to learn and kept riding around the field playing and having fun and the next thing you know - a new person was added to the riding around! I also hold bike rodeos (still do at ages 10 and 13) for boy scouts and girl scouts. I get about 10 cones and have the kids ride around in a big circle - spaced far apart or one at a time - depending on age and ability. We always turn it into a game, but learn rules and skills at the same time. In our area, the police hold bike rodeos too and help train and teach kids and show them and their parents how to wear a helmet properly. It sometimes help to watch a friend ride. I think the more you push it the more resistance you will get. Good luck.

[mupedalpusher]

I agree with the others about letting her decide when the time is right. The little girl I taught this summer really wanted to learn and it worked. My nephew can't ride but he won't try so it's pointless to even bring it up, it will have to be his idea.
I disagree with the methods of you holding her, running along side etc.. She will never learn balance with someone holding on. Use the method many have mentioned and let her learn the balance thing on her own.
Our son had to go out and do it all by himself, he was too stubborn to let us help and when things didn't go well he always said it was our fault. We quit talking to him about the bike and a few weeks later he came in and asked me to look out the window....he was riding. We knew he was practicing "in private" but he didn't want us to watch. Maybe you should just remove the training wheels and tell her the bike is there when she's ready. Tell her she can either try alone or ask for your help but you won't bring it up again. That gives her the power.

[malkin]

My daughter learned this summer.
She also turned 19.


Don't think I didn't try; don't think I didn't cry.
She just didn't; she just wouldn't.

But tonight she was here with her mixte shopping for accessories...she has a 'friend bike' so a friend can ride with her, and she wants a 'friend helmet' too, and a longer lock so she can lock all the bikes. And she wanted "one of those things that shows how fast you are going."

Looking back, I'm more and more convinced that no matter how one plans parenthood, it's a grand adventure, full of surprises that are mostly out of one's control.

AND SHE DID LEARN TO RIDE A BIKE!!!!