any advice to help child learn to ride?

[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.

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.

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!