Children learn to ride a bike fastest by skipping stabilisers altogether: take the pedals off, lower the saddle so both feet are flat on the ground, and let your child walk and glide with the bike until they can balance for several seconds. Then put the pedals back on. For a child who is ready, usually between four and six, it takes a weekend. Helmet on the whole time, and a place with no cars.
It is a Saturday morning in May on an empty school playground in Enskede. The five-year-old got a bike for his birthday, with stabilisers, and after twenty minutes he has ridden into the fence twice and wants to go home. Stabilisers teach children to pedal, but not the hard part, which is keeping your balance by steering. Here is the method we see working in our families' homes, step by step, and what to do when it is not working.
When is a child ready?
| Age | What usually works |
|---|---|
| 2 to 3 years | A balance bike with no pedals. The child walks with the bike between their legs, then runs, then glides. |
| 3 to 4 years | Longer glides on the balance bike, feet up for several seconds, turns. This is where balance is built. |
| 4 to 6 years | A pedal bike without stabilisers. A child who can glide on a balance bike often learns to pedal in an hour. |
| 6 years and up | Works just as well, but the fear is often bigger. Same method, more patience. |
The sign that your child is ready is that they can glide with their feet up for three to four seconds. If they cannot, no amount of pedals will help. A child who does not want to, does not dare or finds it boring is not ready either, and there is no point nagging. Wait a month.
The method, step by step
- Take the pedals off. You need a 15 mm spanner, and remember that the left pedal has a reverse thread: it loosens clockwise. Keep the pedals in your pocket.
- Lower the saddle so that your child sits with both feet flat on the ground, knees slightly bent. Lower than you think.
- Find the right place. A wide tarmac path with a gentle slope, an empty school playground at the weekend, a car park with no cars. Not grass, it slows the bike down too much.
- Walk with the bike. Your child sits on the saddle and walks forward with their hands on the handlebars. Five minutes.
- Run and glide. Longer strides, so that small glides appear between the steps. You walk alongside, but do not hold on.
- Lift the feet. Down the gentle slope: run, lift the feet, glide as far as it goes. Count the seconds out loud. When your child manages three or four seconds and can steer a little during the glide, the balance is there. That is usually Saturday's work.
- Pedals back on on Sunday. Saddle stays low. Your child puts one foot on a pedal set at two o'clock, pushes down and finds the other pedal with their foot. The first pedal strokes are clumsy. That is normal.
- Raise the saddle in stages over the following weeks, until your child touches the ground with their tiptoes when sitting.
What you should not do is hold the rack and run alongside. Then you are the one balancing, not your child, and your child learns to lean against your hand. Hands on your own knees. It feels mean, and it works.
Braking, starting and stopping
Children learn to pedal before they learn to brake, which is why the place should have no cars and no water at the bottom of the slope. Practise the brake standing still first: your child walks with the bike, you say stop, your child pulls the brake. Then the same thing at speed, on flat ground. A back-pedal brake is easier for small children than hand brakes, but the hand brake needs to work and your child's hand needs to reach it.
Starting on their own is the last thing to click: pedal up into the starting position with the foot, eyes forward, push down. Many children can ride for a week before they can start without help. That is not a problem, it is just the order things happen in.
Helmet and equipment
- A helmet is required by law for children under 15, and it sits right when it covers the forehead, does not slide backwards and the buckle sits snugly under the chin. Take it off when your child plays on the climbing frame afterwards. The chin strap can get caught.
- Bike size: your child should reach the ground with their whole foot when the saddle is down. A bike that is too big to grow into is a bike your child will not dare to get on.
- Tyre pressure and brakes get checked before you start, especially on a second-hand bike.
- Long trousers and shoes, not sandals. Grazed knees are part of it, and how to look after them is in Wound care for children.
When it is not working
A child who has a bad fall on the first day can refuse for weeks. Stop while it is going well, not when it is going badly: ten successful glides, then ice cream. If it still is not working, put the bike away for a month and bring the balance bike back out, or borrow a smaller bike. Children who are scared usually need a lower bike, not more practice. Never compare with siblings or friends, and do not say it is easy. It is not. It is just something everyone learns in the end.
If your child has hit their head, with or without a helmet: read Child hit their head about which signs mean you should seek care.
How we do it with our families
Cycling is one of the things our nannies are most often asked to practise, because parents do not have time on weekdays. Denise has a five-year-old in Hässelby she picks up at three on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and in April she took him to an empty school playground every time, twenty minutes, with the pedals unscrewed and in her pocket. She wrote on the note how many seconds he had glided. After three weeks she wrote that it was time for pedals, so that the parents could be there for that weekend. That is a better division of labour than everyone trying on a Sunday when everyone is tired.
This text is general information and does not replace advice from BVC (the child health clinic every family is enrolled in), your vårdcentral (local health centre) or 1177 (the national healthcare helpline). If you are worried about your child, call 1177. In an emergency, call 112.
Would you like a nanny who knows your child, knows what is normal for them and notices when something is different? Book a free first meeting with the nanny in your home.
Read more: The four-year-old · Outdoor games for kids · Wound care for children · Parks in Stockholm with great playgrounds
Frequently asked questions
At what age do children learn to ride a bike?
Most between four and six, and children who have had a balance bike often at four. What decides it is not age but whether your child can balance, which you can see when they glide on the balance bike with their feet up. If they cannot, it is too early for pedals, whatever their age.
Why do stabilisers not work?
Because they teach your child the wrong thing. With stabilisers the bike stays upright and your child learns to pedal but not to balance. When the wheels come off, your child starts again from zero, often with fear. A balance bike, or an ordinary bike with the pedals removed, teaches the hard part first.
Does my child have to wear a helmet?
Yes, by law children under 15 must wear a helmet when cycling, and that includes the park and the courtyard. The helmet should sit level, two fingers above the eyebrows, with the buckle tight enough that it does not slide backwards. Adults who cycle with children are wise to wear one too, because your child does what you do.
Where can children cycle in Stockholm?
Children under eight may cycle on the pavement where there is no cycle path. But a child who has only just learned needs several months on car-free surfaces before they can look around and brake at the same time. Parks and courtyards first, cycle paths with you alongside from seven or eight, traffic considerably later.