riding a bike — Scope | Disability forum
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riding a bike

JimJams
JimJams Community member Posts: 174 Connected
My son has difficulty riding a bike, he cannot seem to balance and steer etc and pedal all at once, I got him a 3 wheeler and he loves it, you can get quite trendy ones, his looks like a bmx but with 3 wheels , all the other kids comment on it when the see him, they think its cool

Comments

  • busymum
    busymum Community member Posts: 1 Listener
    Hi there,
    my child has downs syndrome and is 12 years old. I am trying to teach her to ride a bike, but she is not able to look up ahead, while peddeling. Any sugeestions please!
  • BusyOT
    BusyOT Community member Posts: 76 Listener
    Hi busy mum, well done to your daughter for getting this far on her bike, cycling is great exercise! I'm not sure how to help her look up though ... it may depend on why she won't look up. Is she scared about falling off or does she need to look at her feet to co-ordinate the movements? If you know the answer to that it will help you to provide the right kind of encouragement. I also help with football training for under 7's and they all struggle to control the ball and look up so we put cones in the hall, as an obstacle, to encourage them - you could try something similar when she is on her bike? Might also be worth posting in the main forum, I am sure others would be keen to help.
  • GinaS
    GinaS Community member Posts: 35 Connected
    hi,
    this sounds like an exciting time for your daughter!! is this the only step she finds difficult to complete independently?

    maybe you could start by teaching her to look up ahead while she remains seated on the bike without peddeling. you could initially hold her/ provide reassurance and gradually withdraw your support. Then you might want to prompt her to peddel for a few seconds (1-2) to begin with, providing your full support. Slowly, increase the time she peddels.

    the whole concept is to teach her to look up ahead while peddeling and gradually withdraw your help or even presence.

    However, it does depend on her existing skills and which parts of the 'riding a bike' task she can complete with or without support. Sometimes, watching someone else doing the task can be helpful too.

    Hope that makes sense?
    Let us know how it goes! Gina

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