How old were your kids when they learned to ride a bike?

[Anonymous]

And was it a pain in the a$$ for you as the parent?

[Anonymous]

4th or 5th grade? So around 10.

[Anonymous]

Older DD was 6yrs, 1 month (just looked up the photos). Typical parent holding on to the back of seat and helping to steady, etc.

Younger DD was 4.5. March 2020 when everything shut down she had me take her training wheels off and taught herself to ride through sheer determination and will. No help from me at all.

[Anonymous]

just turned 4 - he did a lot of balance bike and we started and stopped for a few weeks because he would get frustrated. I passed it to my DH because he had more patience, but it was pretty fast after a few starts and stops.

I think there are a few camps that usually teach them pretty quickly.

[Anonymous]

I have 3 kids and they were 5-6. We took off pedals and had them use it like a balance bike, then graduated to holding the back, and then letting go. We practiced on grass and then moved to pavement. All learned in a day. Not hard but it did take patience and a calm attitude. My youngest had motor planning issues so we did not think it would happen at that age but he asked so we let him try. I think it helped that the OT introduced a trike and worked on pedaling beforehand.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have 3 kids and they were 5-6. We took off pedals and had them use it like a balance bike, then graduated to holding the back, and then letting go. We practiced on grass and then moved to pavement. All learned in a day. Not hard but it did take patience and a calm attitude. My youngest had motor planning issues so we did not think it would happen at that age but he asked so we let him try. I think it helped that the OT introduced a trike and worked on pedaling beforehand.

Almost exactly the same. 3 kids, all learned around 5/6. Took a few times in the grass, then. the sidewalk, then we had to practice turns. The hardest part for all of them was learning to get the bike going on their own and not need someone to hold on to it, while they climbed on, and giving them a a little push to get going so they can start pedaling. For some reason, that took the longest to master.

[Anonymous]

5 and yes a huge PITA, even though we’re a cycling family. They learned at school in K and it was awesome.

[Anonymous]

My son was 6 and no, it was fine. It took maybe a total of 5 hrs over a few weekends.

[Anonymous]

5 for motor-delayed DS with special needs.
4 for average DD.

What helped: starting at 2 on balance bike- Strider is a great brand. No pedals. Little kids have a lower center of gravity and it's not hard for them to learn to balance. Then you transition to a real bike effortlessly (without training wheels!).

[Anonymous]

Balance bike at 2.5, regular pedal bike between 3.5 and 4 (remember definitely before 4 because we moved houses a week before 4th birthday).

[Anonymous]

5, no balance bike. Took the training wheels off and took her to a tennis court to practice for about an hour, almost got it. Next day went back no she got it in about 20 mins. Tennis court had no net so was a great space to practice as we don’t have sidewalks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Balance bike at 2.5, regular pedal bike between 3.5 and 4 (remember definitely before 4 because we moved houses a week before 4th birthday).

Me again, agree with prayer above me. The experience with the balance bike made the transition very easy. Like they took off riding immediately when presented with a pedal bike. No fear and somehow knew how to do it without instruction.

[Anonymous]

3.5 (son), went from a balance bike to two wheeler, easy transition. Our daughter is now 3.5 and has been on the old balance bike but her progression has been a little slower. I don’t expect it to be a difficult transition when the time comes. The first two wheel bike our son road was pretty heavy but we got him a Woom when he turned 5 and he loves it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Balance bike at 2.5, regular pedal bike between 3.5 and 4 (remember definitely before 4 because we moved houses a week before 4th birthday).

Same. The balance bike was nbd, with the pedal bike they both took a few minor falls while learning but had it down by 3.5.

[Anonymous]

My daughter finally learned at age 7 after taking the REI bike riding class one morning. I highly recommend the class!