Monday, August 12, 2013

Teaching your kids to ride a bike...the easy (and cheap) way.


So after having tried all kinds of methods and after many tears and crashes, training wheels, no training wheels, running with little biker,etc...we've finally learned the secret! 

I was recently searching on line for the best ways to teach children to ride on two wheels and learned that bikes with no pedals, which are often quite pricey, work amazingly well. My hubby also heard that the best way to teach adults and kids with special needs is to just take all the pedals and training wheels off. 

We had kids "bike" by pushing with their feet in big "walking on the moon" steps. We made it a game to see how long they could balance without touching their feet to the ground. A few short weeks of practicing and they were balancing for about 10-20 seconds without touching the ground.
We put the pedals back on, and just like magic they all took off riding!

*Note:When removing the pedals, the left pedal is usually threaded differently than the right pedal to avoid unintentional unscrewing during riding. The LEFT pedal is RIGHTY-LOOSEY (clockwise), LEFTY-TIGHTY (counter-clockwise). 

4 comments:

Show Me Mama said...

I learned without any training wheels. I remember my dad holding me from the back and then slowing taking his hands away. He did it frequently until I was so used to it. I started to ride my bike on my own. Thanks for the tips. I will definitely use them on my little boy when he gets older.

Closer to Lucy said...

Lol...and where were you when I was teaching my boys to ride? I think my oldest must have held onto the fence for months. This is such a brilliant idea, I can't believe it's not common knowledge!

Tomi C said...

Love it. I remember teaching our kids to ride and wish of thought of this. We used training wheels for the boys & the little old lady (our daughter) had a balance bike. Love your idea!

Jai M. said...

That really does make sense to me how that would help. You have your feet ready to catch you at all times. Really good idea!