Bike Safety for Kids 1-5 years 

 
Keeping your child safe is always a top priority for any parent.  It seems like your child should be perfectly safe riding their wooden balance bike or toddler Bike around the neighborhood, but there is a lot to think about before letting your little one take to the sidewalks on their bike.  Especially with a little one who’s under five you have a great opportunity to start laying down the groundwork for life long bike safety! 

With a really little one you will have to be aware that you can’t present a situation that is too complicated for them to grasp.  However, as they are developing their other skills you need to ensure that they are also developing the corresponding safety skills! 

Before taking any child on a bicycle, whether they are passengers or the bicyclist themselves, the child must be able to support his or her head and neck by themselves.  For most little ones under five they will not be able to ride a bike by themselves, but if they want to learn you should take care that they are always under direct supervision. 

No matter if your preschooler is a cyclist or a passenger you will want to talk to them about how you bike safely.  Additionally, you should also practice what you’re preaching.  Often your little one will learn more by watching what you do rather than listening to what you say. 

You should talk about how bikes are fun, but they are not just toys.  Instead, you should teach your little one that bikes are actually vehicles.   Remind them that they should never take out their bike without an adult nearby.  Also spend some time talking to your child about how a bike crash can happen.  Discuss the factors that your child needs to look for to avoid a crash like running cars, other bicycles, etc.   Teach your child to stop at the end of sidewalks and before crossing a driveway.  Alert them to the fact that even though a car might not be running it could start moving at any moment which could put them in danger.  Also teach them that sometimes it’s hard for cars to see them so they need to make sure that they are visible to drivers.

You will want to help your under 5 year old pick out the right bike for them (depending on their size), and a top quality helmet.  Help them get into the habit of always wearing their helmet when they get on their bike.  Just like you’ve become accustomed to fastening your seatbelt the instant you get in the car you’ll want your little one to instinctively put on their helmet. 

To actually teach your little one to bike you will want to make sure that you spend time with them so that they can figure out how to balance themselves on their bike.  You will want to help them learn how to move in a straight line, and how to be able to turn their bike.  Probably most importantly you will want to teach your little cyclist how to use their brakes. 

With a little bit of time and effort you can start to set the groundwork for your under 5 cyclists biking career.  By spending some serious time educating your child on the safety that is involved in biking you can be sure they will be headed for a life of bicycle safety.

This is an original news article © The Kids Window

Children's Wooden Bikes 

Toddler Bikes 

For bike safety tips for older children check this.

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