How to Safely Teach Your Kid to Ride a Bicycle

Photo by Nathan Anderson on Unsplash

A lot of parents can recall their first bike riding attempts. There are always scraped knees and spills to deal with after a couple of attempts. When the child becomes a great rider, accidents reduce.

You can make the learning experience safer for the child by following these steps:

Use helmets and ride along

Take the child on your bike as a passenger if he is not old enough to try. Only teach a child how to ride a bike when he can sit without support. Also, ensure that the bike is sturdy and has a fitting helmet to prevent injuries.

A lightweight helmet is ideal for this purpose. A good bicycle shop will have the right selection of helmets for kids. The personnel can also recommend the proper helmet according to fitting.

Start with a tricycle

When your child starts climbing, jumping and running, it is time to get him a tricycle. This means the child is strong enough to pedal. It also increases the risk of falls. Ensure that the child is securely buckled to prevent accidents.  A low tricycle with big wheels is ideal for a first timer.

Ride safely

Let the child ride in a safe area such as a sidewalk in a quiet neighborhood. Always stay close to supervise. Avoid rowdy areas and pool areas. A tricycle is very small and hardly noticeable by an oncoming vehicle.

The child can progress to a two-wheeler at five years old. But this doesn’t apply to all kids. Let the child develop at his own pace.