It is one of those pivotal moments in any parent’s life and especially so if you bike a lot yourself. Watching your kids learn how to pedal bike is right up there with taking first steps in the memory bank for a lot of parents. But how on earth do you teach them?
If you have started on a balance bike learning how to pedal will be a lot easier for kiddos, but if you didn’t don’t worry kids are sponges and progression can be huge with patience and some persistence.
How do you know they are ready?
They are asking for pedals and have a desire to put some effort into learning. If they are on balance bikes they can coast on their balance bike with their feet resting on the frame or in the air on a regular basis and coast down small hills in control.
Step 1- Balance
The most important thing in biking is balance, so getting comfortable coasting on a bike without pedals is going to be their first step. Take the pedals off their bike and get them to become comfortable with it. If they can’t put the majority of their foot on the ground, then the bike is too big. Yes, you can learn to ride with just tippy toes on the ground but it is not going to instill confidence. Get them to stride along on the bike without pedals and play some coasting games for them to travel 10-15 feet without having to take more strides. Cones and sidewalk chalk are really helpful and cheap. If the cranks are getting in the way, just velcro strap the crank arm to the chainstay, but most of the time we don’t worry about the cranks. The big purpose is for the kids to get the bike moving, looking forward, and resting their feet in the air or on the cranks of the bike. If they get frustrated and want to go back to their balance bike let them. Forcing kids to do anything is an uphill battle.
Step 2- Braking
Show them how to use the hand brakes, if the bike has a coaster brake (backpedal brake) most of this article won’t be a ton of help to you. Take some tape or paint to the rear brake lever and let them understand the difference between the front and rear brake. If the bike isn’t able to stop with their hands then get the brakes tuned up. The modern-day v-brakes are incredible for stopping kids and with small reach brake leavers we have regularly taught two-year-olds to use brakes.
If you notice that your kid’s fingers are really stretched out, have a look for a reach screw on the hand brakes and dial it in so that the reach length is shortened. After you have done that you may need to adjust the cable tensioner loosen the brake cable a tiny bit. Red light/ Green light games, stopping challenges, and skid practices are all great ways to practice using brakes.
Step 3- Pedaling-
There are a few strategies once kids are comfortable with balancing and braking with their pedal bike to help them start to pedal.
Strategy 1- The Rocket Ship
If kids are very comfortable with balance, one strategy is to get them to put their feet on the pedals at the 3 and 9 o'clock position and push them from the back at their hips to send them off. This can allow them to get the momentum needed for balance and then they can experiment with turning their pedals forward and backward. Kids will naturally pedal both ways to get comfortable with pedaling and this is one of the reasons that coaster brakes hinder kids from learning how to ride.
One strategy I tend to use is to talk about the noise that occurs when kids pedal backward (this comes from the freewheel) as something noisy, like bees, and then them silence their bike or pedal forward to makes the bee be quiet.
One downside of this strategy is that harder for them to begin to start on their own and will consistently need you until they transition to one of the other strategies.
Strategy 2- Push, Push, Pedal
Without the pedals on, get kids to stride and rest their feet on the cranks. Once they have mastered that, you can put the pedals back on then get them to stride to gain speed, and then start to pedal. Being in front of them about ten feet away is helpful to get them to look up at you. The pedaling motion can come fairly naturally, but it may take a few tries. A slightly downward-facing wide slope can really help, but make sure it isn’t too soft so kids can propel or pedal forward. We find empty parking lots, paved back lanes or quiet streets are great places to learn. Getting kids to look up is probably the trickiest part as they tend to pedal into things and don’t pedal straight unless they have their head up more than down. One tip we like to use is to pretend that the biking fairy is flying in front of them and fairies fly better when kids’ eyes are on them and when they look away for too long the biking fairy falls out of the sky.
Strategy 3- Earn Your Steps
Some kids really want their parents to hold them when they are beginning to pedal. Avoid touching the handlebars as kids really need to be in control of their own bike. Handing them under the armpits or under the seat, lightly and running alongside kids to help them get to the speed when balancing the bike comes more naturally and then run alongside them encouraging them to pedal their bikes in a forward motion.
Remember it is natural for kids to pedal backward when learning and is totally normal. Just keep encouraging them to pedal forward.
When parents or kids reach the point of frustration, it is time to switch and do something new. Frustration and learning between adults and kids isn’t a huge recipe for success.
Final Strategy- Independent start
Starting with a foot on a pedal at the 3 o’clock position and then the other foot on the ground. Pushing down on the pedal, striding forward with the foot on the ground, and then head up and covering brake levers is what you are striving towards. Some kids do take a while to start with a foot on a pedal and sometimes use the push, push pedal strategy for a while and that is ok. Even when they can pedal independently using the push, push, pedal method. Place a hand on their back to give them the confidence to start with one foot on a pedal.
Kids’ focus and attention will naturally float around and having a game and goal of looking forward really helps them have a purpose to have their attention to the task at hand.
Bumps and Bruises
No matter what strategy works for you, kids will need to pedal independently without you within hands’ reach. There will be bumps and bruises. We always recommend a good-fitting helmet and long pants can also help with the little cuts and scrapes that occur along the way. We call all bumps and bruises ‘fun spots’. The less of a big deal you make of them the more kids realize that they are part of the cycling journey. There are a lot of new unrestrictive pads on the market that won’t hinder them pedaling and still provide some protection too. Bike gloves are also a great idea as scraped-up hands are never fun to deal with.
Last Thoughts
Some kids will get on their pedal bike and after a few pushes will be pedaling independently, going to show how important and effective balance bikes can be. Other kids will go back and forth between their balance bikes and pedal bikes when frustrated and remember that there is no rush to pedaling. Our own kids were super comfortable on balance bikes and were fully content with staying on them as long as possible. The patience from me was probably the hardest thing about the pedaling process.
Keep things fun, have plenty of power-up pellets or bike beans as we call them on hand, and be patient. Once they are comfortable with pedaling work on steering efficiently through pointing where you want to go with their belly button to avoid oversteering, learn how to stand up and pedal, and then move to ride up and down small hills. Celebrate this milestone and treat yourself to your favorite cold one- Parenting ain't easy!!
It’s so helpful for me. I don’t think about taking out the pedals to practice balancing, if it were me, I would hold my kid and push and teach them how to use the pedals. Maybe my way is impatient and too hasty. I find it very good to put the pedals away to practice balance, I will try this and teach it to my kid. Thanks for your sharing.
My 3-yo really likes me me to grab a fist full of his shirt with both hands for reassurance. Which he calls “grab me like a zombie” and I just think it’s hilarious.