{"id":1338,"date":"2017-12-28T14:11:03","date_gmt":"2017-12-28T20:11:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/askdoctorg.com\/?p=1338"},"modified":"2021-05-10T13:59:49","modified_gmt":"2021-05-10T18:59:49","slug":"how-to-teach-your-child-to-ride-a-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/askdoctorg.com\/how-to-teach-your-child-to-ride-a-bike\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Teach Your Child to Ride a Bike"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Did your child get a bike for the holiday? Learning to ride a bike is one of the best ways to teach your child resilience. Not because they\u2019ll master it quickly, but because it takes practice. And because it\u2019s hard for most kids! They will get frustrated and they will fall, but the lesson is in how they handle those falls and how they pick themselves up, learn from where they went wrong and carry on. It\u2019s an amazing life lesson, learned at an early age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Safety First<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Before your child takes their first ride, you should be sure that they are protected. To get them excited about riding a bike and being safe you may want to get your kids involved in picking out their own safety equipment. Let them choose a helmet they like and a color of pads. This way, they will want to wear them. At first, you should put them in long sleeves and long pants under their pads. That way when they fall, you can reduce the chance of scrapes. Be sure that shoelaces are tied and aren\u2019t dragging around the pedals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the bike, make sure that the tires are inflated properly and your child can put both feet comfortably on the ground. Once they are all suited up and their bike is ready, the next step is to find a safe place to ride. Ideally it would be a large open space where they won\u2019t have to worry about obstacles or looking out for cars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ready to Ride?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Start Standing has outlined three methods to teach a child to ride a bike. For complete step-by-step instructions, you can visit their site {HERE}<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Method One: No Pedals <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this method, you remove the pedals to the child\u2019s bike and allow them to coast around. This helps them get a center of balance and lets them practice turning. When they are comfortable and mastered their balance on the bike, they can move ahead to learning braking and riding with the pedals back on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Method Two: Towel Method<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This method can help them learn to ride a bike fast, but it requires the parent to run with the child. By wrapping a towel around the body as a harness, it allows you to hold the child up as they learn to balance, pedal, turn and brake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Method Three: Grass Hill Method<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although this method SOUNDS scary, it is not. If you have access to a small grass hill, you can try this method. It lets children build momentum with the slope safely, as the grass will naturally slow them down and will make a softer landing space if they fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No matter what the method, you may encounter some other challenges. This process can be scary for kids and their natural reaction may be to not want to try. It\u2019s up to us to get to the bottom of that fear and help them navigate through it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are They Afraid?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Here are some questions you can answer to determine how to deal with your child\u2019s fear of riding a bike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. What\u2019s the real issue? Is your child afraid of\u2026<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n