Forget Training Wheels: Get Your Child A Balance Bike

Forget Training Wheels: Get Your Child A Balance Bike

By:


As a parent, teaching your children to ride a bike can seem like a menacing task. There are many variables to consider when purchasing their first bike. You may ask yourself: what kind of bike should I buy for my 3-4 year old? Does my toddler need to start with a tricycle? Should I buy a traditional "big kid" bike and attach training wheels? How can I teach my young child to balance on a bicycle without falls and injuries?

The balance bike is a bicycle designed with young children in mind. Lacking pedals, it was built specifically for toddlers and young children learning how to balance well enough to eventually ride a "big kid bike." Balance bikes are ideal for children who are eager to learn to a ride a bike but who lack the coordination or long limbs to handle a traditional bike. Balance is a difficult skill to master without extensive practice, and a balance bike is a useful learning device.

Balance bikes are designed so that toddlers and young children can touch their feet to the ground and use the support of their legs as needed without being knocked off balance and facing painful falls. A child on a balance bike propels himself forward by walking or running, a maneuver which allows both support and forward motion. On a traditional bicycle, a child must simultaneously balance and pedal -- two separate skills that compound the learning challenge.

Toddlers are often disappointed to be told that they can't ride a bike until they are older, especially if they see older siblings or other children riding them with apparent ease. You can use a balance bike to satisfy their desire to ride while helping them safely develop the balance needed to use a pedal bike.

While training wheels are a traditional first purchase for young children who are eager to learn to ride a bike, the support of training wheels is actually detrimental to acquiring a sense of balance: In order to learn how to ride a bike, you have to take a leap of faith to cross the period of instability between when you begin pedaling and when the bike builds enough speed to generate gyroscopic and steering stability.

This is why training wheels are more of a hindrance than a help in learning to ride on two wheels. Even skilled cyclists have trouble reestablishing two-wheel balance after their weight has fallen on a side wheel. A child riding a bike with training wheels will learn how to pedal but not how to balance. As a result, many children wind up limping along with training wheels for extended periods and never coming closer to acquiring the balance skills they need to ride on two wheels.

On a balance bike, a child learns to balance at their own speed. Their ability to pedal will come easily once they start using a regular bike, since their balance will already be refined. Balance bikes also teach children that with increased speed comes increased stability -- a key concept for bicycling.

Balance bikes allow children to learn at their own rate. Children can practice steering and maneuvering a balance bike without fear of falling. Once a child learns how to balance, the transition from a balance bike to a traditional "big kid" bike is both safe and easy.

About the Author:
When her toddler was ready for a bicycle, Deborah Lillian purchased a KaZAM Balance Bike instead of a kids bike with training wheels. The KaZAM is an award-winning balance bike for children ages 3 to 6. KaZAM makes learning to ride a bike safe, easy and fun. Deborah Lillian taught her son how to ride a bike using the Kazam Balance Bike.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

|

Loading...
Related....
Videos...

Recent UnCategorized Articles

Comments

Still can't find what you are looking for? Search for it!

Loading

Site Navigation:

Copyright 2005-2011 ArticleSnatch, LLC - All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy | Terms of Service.