Before riding, encourage your child to warm up off the bike by first practicing walking with their bike. The temptation is to immediately attempt riding, but walking with the bike first will help your child become more comfortable with their bike and learn how the steering and brakes work.

Support your child to walk with their bike in both directions, turning left and right, so they get used to steering in both directions. Prompt them to cover their brakes at all times and practice using them. You can do this with a simple “red light” and “green light” game! They will learn that they don’t need to always squeeze the brakes very tightly in order to make their bike slow down or stop! Remember to teach your child to keep their brakes on when their bike is stationary; this will stop it from rolling around!

Teach your child to give themselves a little space from their bike when walking or standing next to it. This will prevent them from bumping into the bike or falling over it.

Now, what do you need to teach your child about getting on and off a bike?

New riders are actually more likely to fall when getting on and off their bike than when actually cycling along. It is therefore important to teach your child the proper technique for getting on and off their bike! Demonstrate this to your child: Show them how to apply both brakes, lean the bike to one side, and then swing a leg over the back. Teach your child to keep their brakes on whenever they are stationary!

Get your child to practice getting on and off multiple times and to try this from either side. This will help them develop their balance and coordination. When getting on and off, they will need to place their standing leg a fair distance from the frame of the bike; this will enable them to lean their bike towards them, which lowers the height of the saddle. They should avoid getting on and off by lifting their leg over the top tube of the bike frame. This can lead them to catch their foot on the frame and fall over.

So, to recap: Prior to riding, encourage your child to warm up by walking with their bike. This will help them to get comfortable with their bike, learn steering and braking, and develop confidence. Practice walking in both directions, emphasising brake control with a "red light" and "green light" game. Teach your child to keep their brakes on whenever they are stationary and to have a little space from their bike while walking or standing next to it to prevent bumps or falls.

What should I teach my child about getting on and off their bike?

What do you need to teach your child about walking with a bike? Unii has the answers.