Training Wheels Be-gone

I have heard that when you take off the training wheels, take the pedals off too-gives her a chance to learn how to balance the bike first, since she already knows how to pedal. then add the pedals and she will be great!! I will be doing the same thing soon, so let me know how it works! Good luck!

My dad with me and my husband with my oldest boy did not completely remove the training wheels at first. Instead, they gradually raised them little by little until they were to high to touch the ground. When they noticed that the wheels did not touch at all for several days, they would talk the kid about removing them completely. "Hey, you rode all the way down the road and the training wheels did not touch the ground at all. Do you want to see if you can ride without?" We always let the kid decide when they wanted them off. Yes, my boy landed in the ditch a time or two and tore the soles off of a pair of shoes dragging his feet instead of using the breaks because he was afraid of falling.

What really helped my son with confidence was going to our church youth camp and being allowed to take his bike along. His bike still had the training wheels on but they were no longer touching the ground. The other boys made fun of his bike and he refused to ride his at camp. Instead he rode the other boys bikes throughout camp and when he came home he was ready for dad to remove the training wheels.

We took our daughters to the school playground on a weekend or evening when no one was there and let her go. Its much easier (and less scary) because there is nothing to run into, no cars and little distractions. Also, I'd leave the training wheels on but raise them only slightly so she can make sharper turns but less chance of tipping over.

We raised the training wheels slightly so that she had to balance more but still had that security. She taught herself...

My BFF took one training wheel off so her daughter could lean over on the remaining one if she felt like she was going to fall.

I just taught my 4 and 6 yo using the training wheels off, pedals off too, method. We have an inclined driveway and I demonstrated on my own bike how to balance on the seat and keep my feet off the ground while letting the bike drift down the driveway. I told them to do the same thing. The spent 3 days learning to keep their balance and 'ride' their bikes down the driveway. Then we put the pedals back on and they literally pedaled away from me :) WOOT! Now we're having a blast riding all over the neighborhood! GL!!

With our son we raised the training wheels up and up slowly without him knowing. When it was time he was still scared about it, and my husband and I would run up and down the street with him holding onto the back, It took just a couple times, a few crashes, major confidence boosters like: Yay! You are doing it!! and he was off and running.

i just taught my newly 6 year olds. put helmet on, knee and elbow pads. i ran like crazy after them. they learned in 1.5 days.

We started by slightly raising the training wheels. Then, when we took them off we took my son to a nearby park with a little hill and had him ride down that and along the grass so if he fell it wouldn't hurt so much. He had really good balance to begin with and learned quickly when he was 4 years old. My sister got a bar that attaches to the back of the bike so she didn't have to bend over when she pushed off my nephew.

We took off the training wheels on the left side and kept the right side on.

Both of my girls learned to ride like this. They could use the training wheel when needed and It helped teach them to balance.

yep take the pedals off(not the whole thing just the actual pedals)..our 5 year old used it as a balance bike for 2 days and was ready to have them back on . Make sure the bike is small enough so the child can touch the ground when fully sitted on the seat. With our youngest we did not even try to teach him(he is 3), but one of his friends try to ride his bike and bent the traning wheel so they were 1 -2 inches off the ground. Our son was riding it like that for a while and one day at the friend's house picked up a 2 wheeler and rode it like a pro. So you might want to try both ways:)

We did what Lauren did. Take the training wheels off lower the seat far enough that your kiddo can put their feet flat on the ground and take the pedals off. Worked like a charm for both our boys. It help if you have someplace with a little bit of an incline so they can get a tiny bit of speed. Just have them go down the incline and pick their feet up as much as feel comfortable. Pretty soon they will make it down the whole incline be turning and asking for the pedals back. I found this method on line after trying making the training wheels higher and taking the training wheels off and running with them didn't work. It gives them the confidence that the can catch themselves without the pedals in the way. What ever the method you choose good luck! There is nothing better than the look on your childs face when they start doing it themselves.

Take the pdals and traing wheels off so she can runn and balance on her bike. Once she has her balance you can put the pedals back on. Works like a charm!