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Original poster

Riding a bike & learning to swim, what age?

26 replies

DooWahDiddy · 20/05/2010 11:34

Hi there

My DS is 6.5 yo and it seems that most of his friends can ride their bikes without stabilisers. My DS can't and doesn't seem to interested in trying

Do you think I should be worried or just leave it until he really wants to give it a good try.

Also same for swimming, what age would you say is average for learning to swim?

Thanks

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Seona1973 · 20/05/2010 12:17

dd started swimming lessons aged 4 1/2 (40 minutes once a week) and can swim quite well now (aged 6 1/2). She still cant go her bike without stabilisers and it ends up in a crying match when we take her out to try.

anchovies · 20/05/2010 12:22

If he's not bothered about the stabilisers either way I would just take them off and get cracking. Doubt my ds would have wanted them off but I just said one day we were going to have a bash at 2 wheels. Surprisingly it only took 2 days. He was 5 at the time I think.

We started swimming lessons for both ds's at age 4 but lots in ds1s class are just starting (year 1).

Original poster

DooWahDiddy · 20/05/2010 12:23

Thanks for you reply.

I'm going to have a look into swimming lessons, me and OH aren't the strongest swimmers so probably wont be much good at teaching him.

DS is exactly the same with the bike riding, if he can't get something right first time he just gets frustrated and gives up.

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Original poster

DooWahDiddy · 20/05/2010 12:24

Hi Anchovies we posted at the same time.

I have taken off the stabilisers but he doesn't really want to try, just whinges and gets in a strop.

OP posts:

witchwithallthetrimmings · 20/05/2010 12:29

DS could ride a bike without stabilisers a few months before his 4th birthday. He was one of the first of his friends but there was one kid who could do it before he was 3!. Quite a few of his friends (both girls and boys) are still on stabilisers. He is now just over 5
He can swim a few strokes (more underwater though) but is by no means swimming. Of his friends the ones that have had lessons can swim and the ones that have not cant

Francagoestohollywood · 20/05/2010 12:37

I wouldn't be worried about not being able to ride a bike, especially if he is not interested and doesn't use the his bike often.

I think 6.5 is a good age to start taking swimming lessons.

FranSanDisco · 20/05/2010 12:42

Iirc both of mine were 5 yo when they rode a bike without stabilisers. 5 yo is a good age for starting swimming lessons as well though ds was in lessons at 3 yo. It has taken him a while to get to a good level whereas dd started at 5 yo and progressed quickly. I don't know why but girls seem to pick up swimming quicker? Lots of little girls in the borough squad but no little boys and then lots of older boys in the higher squads

MrsDinky · 20/05/2010 12:42

My DS is the same with the bike, not interested for long periods, then goes out, then falls off, then moans about it for days, then doesn't try again for weeks. He's 6. Whereas DD (4) is always out on hers, gets up and rides again when she falls off, and is likely to be without stabilisers before her brother, we're thinking that might spur him on a bit. He scooters everywhere.

Swimming - he's been having lessons since 4 and can swim 10m on front and back, but this does depend very much on how long they've been having lessons IMO. Some of his friends are only just starting.

Bramshott · 20/05/2010 12:51

DD1 was 7 in Jan and has just learnt to ride a bike without stablisers. She wasn't keen initially, but it was actually surprisingly quick and easy. I get the impression that that's fairly late among her peers.

She's been swimming fairly well for the last year or so, but she goes to lessons twice a week - once in a private group lesson, and once with school.

bruffin · 20/05/2010 12:56

Both DCs learnt to ride a bike at 5, both taught by other children.

They had swimming lessons since babies, they could swim short distances mostly underwater by the age of 3 but proper strokes from 5.

thumbwitch · 20/05/2010 13:05

I started DS at baby swimming classes when he was 4-5mo - he's now 2.6 and loves being in the water, does the swimming strokes ok but can't actually stay afloat by himself yet.

Bike - I plan to get him one of those wooden pedal-less bikes for his 3rd birthday and move on from there.

I didn't learn to swim until I was 12, at school; and didn't learn to ride a bike until I was 7 so don't want DS to be as late as I was. My parents had strange attitudes to both - my mum had zero interest as she could neither swim nor ride a bike; and my Dad wouldn't take me swimming until I could swim (?) or let me have a bike until I could ride one (??)

Original poster

DooWahDiddy · 20/05/2010 13:11

Thanks everyone.

I'm goung to leave the bike for the time being until he shows some interest.

Having a look into what swimming lessons are available in our area. I would have started swimming lessons sooner but he has eczema which was a lot worse when he was younger and wouldn't have tolerated regular swimming pool vists.

OP posts:

Blu · 20/05/2010 13:19

You can take all the pain and struggle out of learning to ride a bike if you:
Remove stabiisers
Remove pedals
Encourage them to use the bike as a balance bike, going down hill, round corners etc
Once they are freewheeling cnfidently, esp round corners, without pedals
Put the pedals back on.
They will be able to ride.

Apparantly, stabilisers actually encourage them to use balance in a way which is counter-productive to balancing. By doing this they learn to balance, and then just pedal away - which removes the frsutrating stage. It worked wih DS, anyway, who as he has a mobility disability needed as much help as possible - he was up and away with no trouble.

BUT he has only learned to swim at 8. He is wiry and skinny - no fat. Spendng all day every day in a pool on hol with me shouting 'kick! Push!' etc didn't do the trick. Half way through his first lesson with a professional teacher, he swam!

anonymousbird · 20/05/2010 13:24

My two live on their bikes and as such, could ride without stabilisers at 3.5 and 4.5 (ie. at exactly the same time this time last year) because the bikes had no stabilisers and if they wanted to ride, then they had to learn without!!

Mind you, it is all they did/do when they are at home... so a lot of time spent.

Swimming - both now (at 4.5 and 5.5) have 10 metre badges. They swim every week and often more in the holidays.

Lancelottie · 20/05/2010 13:33

My three:
DS1 rode at 6, the first time we took off the stabilizers; swam at 6 (hated hated hated swimming lessons, so I'm not sure how he learnt!)
DS2 rode at 6, swam at 9 (skinny sinking beanpole child, like Blu's)
DD rode at 8, swam at 4 (but isn't remotely skinny)

Fennel · 20/05/2010 13:38

My 3 have all been very good early cyclists (2 were 4, one was 3) but mediocre swimmmers (maybe all learned around 5-6, but their friends who'd rarely been as babies or toddlers soon overtook them, and they are still all in classes with children a lot younger. Despite having had lots of early exposure to swimming as well as cycling.

I have to conclude that as a family we are built for wheels not water.

veritythebrave · 20/05/2010 14:02

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

cat64 · 20/05/2010 14:28

This reply has been deleted

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JL123 · 07/02/2011 17:14

DD learnt to ride bike w/o stabilisers at 4 1/2 and has been swimming since age 2. Now 5 1/2 has just got her 50m badge (25m front crawl followed immediately by 25m back crawl). Very proud. Most of the children in her class (Year 1) can at least swim 20m with a correct stroke. They swim once at school and most have lessons after school with a really excellent private swimming group (2:1 beginners and 4:1 intermediates (once they can swim 25m)). She has so much confidence it and loves it. It worked starting really early for her but it's not for every child.

laughalot · 07/02/2011 17:19

My ds is 6 he rode without stabilisers from 5 he has just got his 20m swimming badge

My dd is just 4 she cannot swim and cannot ride her bike properly yet even with stabilisers.

MegBusset · 07/02/2011 18:01

DS1 will be four in a couple of weeks and can do neither. He's not the least bit interested in bikes - has had a trike since age 2 but been on it about twice. Likewise has a scooter that never gets used. I'll get him a balance bike prob at school age, hopefully peer pressure will kick in and he'll want to learn then.

Re: swimming, he loves splashing about in the water but shows no inclination to learn to swim. Again I'll leave lessons til he's more keen.

I didn't learn to swim until I was 13 (!) or cycle until I was 26 (!!) so perhaps it's genetic?

emlu67 · 08/02/2011 16:46

Hello

My DD is nearly 7 and is physically quite a slow developer (never rolled over as a baby or crawled, walked very late, found soft play centres quite a challenge to climb up and couldn't pedal a trike until 4 1/2). Even now I notice a difference between her and her peers.

She is also unable to ride a bike without stabilisers and now that we have taken them off doesn't seem interested in the bike at all and prefers her scooter. She does get frustrated if she can't get the hang of things first time round and tends to give up easily. I am not too worried as not everyone is in to cycling and perhaps when it is a bit warmer she will want to try again.

As for swimming she started lessons a year ago at nearly 6 and is making progress although quite slowly but she does enjoy it and is learning a life skill which is the main thing. I do agree with the other poster about not waiting too long as an older child could feel out of place in a beginners group with 3&4 year olds.

So don't worry too much about the bike riding but I definitely think swimming lessons are a good idea at this age.

HildegardVonBlingen · 08/02/2011 16:49

Benign neglect works with bikes. If there is a bike available without stabilisers, they will ride it. DD started riding her brother's old bike at just four: I couldn't be bothered to put the stabilisers back on it. DS was probably five when he stopped using stabilisers.

Benign neglect presumably doesn't work with swimming. Both had lessons from 6 and 4 respectively; two years on, they are now both reasonably competent (unlike me).

LIZS · 08/02/2011 16:50

ds is dyspraxic, can't ride a bike but learrt to swim at around 6 (of a fashion) - he's now 12. dd(9) has not really shown any inclination towards riding a bike and learnt to swim at around 4 1/2 - 5

alarkaspree · 08/02/2011 16:50

I feel reassured by this. Dd got a new bike for her 6th birthday and I didn't get stabilisers for it, thinking she would learn to ride without them if they weren't there. But she can't and isn't that interested in trying. She can rollerblade pretty well though.

She has always loved going swimming and started swimming without a float when she was around 4 1/2.

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