Teaching a 2 1/2 Yr Old to Ride a Bike

He might just be still too young. Are you using a tricycle or Big Wheel?
I'd start there first and/ or give it another year. : )

Try a bike whose peddals that are more in front of the child than directly under his knees. Most of the tricycles, the pedals are at an angle that make it too difficult at first. Most of the plastic ride on toys with wheels are at a better angle for kids that age. I've learned from expeirence with 15 years in daycare and my own two little rugrats! ONce they get it, it's soooooo cool!

I think he may be too young. Pedaling is not an easy concept to grasp. My daughter didn't get it until she was over age 3, and my son will be 3 this week, and he cannot figure it out no matter how many times I've tried to show him. He gets very frustrated and has tantrums because he can't make his tricycle go. I was thinking about getting him a small battery powered car for the time being, but since the weather will soon be turning, we'll just try pedaling again in the spring.

Use training wheels.

does he have a bigwheel or tricycle that doesn't have the foot break? This way, maybe he can learn that when he pedals backwards he will not get anywhere. The first battle is getting him to understand that the pedals are what get him going...after that comes the balance...good luck...:)

My little guy will be 3 in December and we started this past summer with him riding a tricycle..He was having problems getting the hang of it so we put a string on the handle bars so we could pull him and his little feet pedal like crazy, we have let go of the string a couple of times and he will do it himself until he realizes we let go:)- Try it, it helps him get the hang of the motion.

My son was 2 in March and he just in the last few weeks got the pedalling thing down! It just takes time and we just kept telling him to keep trying. It is all trial and error and once they get, they get it! Do not worry, probably next spring he will get it.

Really, they just have to get the hang of the whole pedaling motion and see how it works. Trial and error. Keep supporting him and encouraging. Try putting words to what he is doing to make it sink in---"You're moving," when he goes forward; "See that stops your bike," when he goes back. He will be taking off before you know it and you will have to tell him to slow down so you can keep up! Good luck

PS If this is a two-wheeler, you may want to wait until he gets the hang of the whole pedaling motion...my kids are pretty active and agile, none of them learned to ride a two wheeler before 4...Again, good luck

Maybe try him out on a two-wheeled scooter first. The Chicagoland Bicycle Federation suggests a scooter for kiddos starting to ride, instead of a regular bike with training wheels. It helps with balance.

My 3 year old can't peddle at all, so I wouldn't worry too much about it unless he really wants to be able to do it. In that case, I can't give you any advice.

My son's first bike had no brakes on the pedals. It was very small and he wasn't able to get it up to much speed, so if we were right there it wasn't an issue. If you don't have that option, just give it time. He'll figure it out.

Good luck!
A.

Don't worry, he'll get it. It's perfectly normal for a 2 1/2 old to have this problem. Both of my boys did too...they're now 6 and almost 10. Just don't give up and don't force him to do it. My 10 year old had the same problem with the tricycle but didn't have a problem with balance when it came to riding a bike without training wheels. My youngest son had no problem with riding the tricycle and a bike with training wheels but was terrified to ride a two wheeler. We waited it out. We rewarded him with jumping up and down and high-fives for just going a few feet. Then, right before first grade he got on his bike and took off.

At two and a half he's way too young for a bike. Try one of those big wheel type of trikes. They are set lower to the ground with the pedals level with his hips when he sits. Most of them are plastic and are cheap to buy.

Bikes are for older kids. My son didn't learn to ride a bike till he was 8 years old.

all four of my children did the same thing. i just kept showing them the forward movement and they eventually learned. just keep encouraging him when he does go forward and have him watch you. do it slow so that he understands. with my daughter i would actually do the pedaling motion with her as she laid on the floor or on the couch. don't worry he will catch on - you just have to be very patient.
good luck

Generally, we have waited until age 3 before attempting a bike. others have suggested the big wheel or a tricycle. these are great places to start. Our 2.5 year old loves her big wheel. sometimes she will pedal but it allows her the option to just walk it out too. For the most part all we want her to do is get a sense of perpetual motion. actual "bike riding" will come with time.
That said, one of the things tat helped our kids understand the pedaling concept was to tell them to "march" on the bike. Then when they are off the bike, working on marching as knees up and big step forward.

I don't think he is ready. Put him back on the tricycle or big wheel until next spring when he can try the big boy bike. It is amazing what will change in 6 months.

Don't worry! Most kids this age have a hard time with forward and backward. If he hasn't had much already, you might want to give him more practice on those little vehicles that don't have peddles but just allow the child to "push" himself with his feet. The most important thing is to not make him feel like he's "not getting it". This happened to my niece and she didn't learn to ride a 2 wheeler until she was 8. (No joke). Just have fun with him. You're setting the tone for learning new things. If you're stressed/frustrated, he will be too.