If you remember a previous post, Boston Bikes came to our school for several weeks to teach many of our second through fifth graders how to ride a bike and to review bicycle safety for those who already knew how to pedal. After much rain, too much rain, the kids finally had a chance to get out there.
Getting enough bikes for a whole class into the schoolyard was a team effort. Graham and Corey, our bicycle mentors brought them out of a nearby garage.
Getting enough bikes for a whole class into the schoolyard was a team effort. Graham and Corey, our bicycle mentors brought them out of a nearby garage.
Then the kids rolled them into the schoolyard.
The first part of any ride is NOT hopping on the seat and speeding off. The kids learned out to stretch as we should all do before any type of exercise. Next, get those helmets on and adjust them to fit correctly.
Then Corey and Graham matched the kids with a perfectly sized bike, one whose seat came up to their hips. Then it was time to do the ABCs of getting ready to ride that they had learned in the classroom: check the Air in the tires, the Brakes' condition, and the Chain to see if it was strung correctly.
And they're off! The kids who already knew how to ride could start by making big circles in the schoolyard.
Beginning riders had a different routine in another part of the schoolyard. No one used training wheels. Graham and Corey knew a better way to learn. Chanting "Scoot, scoot, glide!" the kids made exactly those motions as they made their way across the yard. Then back again, all the while improving their sense of balance. At a certain point, the kids would automatically place their feet on the pedals and go, go, go!
By the end of Boston Bikes' visit, everybody who tried learned to ride a bike.
Hooray!
