Read what kids and schools have to say about Bikes in Schools and our Cycling Skills Program…
I am writing to express my delight at the programme that Kevin has offered the students here at Whangarei Intermediate School. Kevin, when teaching, has a calm demeanour. This helps a tremendous amount with what is for some of our students quite a tricky skill. As adults I think we take for granted that all Kiwi Kids can ride a bike. Some of our students have never actually had that opportunity. Both Kevin and Gwen are patient and do not make our students feel anything other than confident. Meaning here that they do not make them feel shame for their lack of skill.
Kevin and Gwen take what could be a very risky operation, that of going on the road, and make it seem seamless. It is very nice to see the kids out of school grounds. Our school has somewhat of a reputation in the local area for being a bit rough. By cycling out of the school I believe that the local community can see our kids for what they are, kids.
Kevin has also done extra work for the school by taking a group of 10-15 students to the new facilities and shown them what skills they need to use the bike tracks effectively. This has given the students another activity to do on the weekend, apart from staring at their devices.
Yours sincerely,
Shannon Watson
Shannon
"Watching senior non-riding students learning successfully to ride was a highlight. (Kevin's skills were superb)."
"The programme provided the children with a varied and exciting way to learn more about riding and controlling their bike."
"The children loved the games/skills introduced. At least 2 of mine made amazing progress from not wanting or really being able to ride to being very engaged and trying to win the games."
"Thank you for teaching us how to ride a bike safely. People that did not know how to ride, do now.
I liked the obstacle courses, going round and round. It was a very cool way to learn how to signal where you are going, to be aware of the cars by making eye contact and looking over your shoulder.
My favourite thing was putting the ball on the cone so now I am really good at signalling. I am also a much better bike rider. I like being your helper and the leader."
Izzy
"My class and I would like to say a big thanks for teaching us sensible ways to ride a bike. I really enjoyed it. Now I feel safe when I do the A.B.C.D.E., bike check before I ride my bike.
I learned that riding a bike is not just a thing that comes straight away, it's actually something that takes lots of practice and requires you to think safely.
My favourite part of the learning experience was when you taught us how to look over our shoulders to see the cars behind us. Also when we had to carry the ball with one hand around the cones which I know helps our balance in this situation."
Jack
"Thank you for teaching us how to put our helmet on, and thank you for teaching us how to ride bikes properly.
I learned that our bikes have two brakes and that I can ride with one hand. I learned that if you apply the back brake, you will only do a skid but if you apply the front brake, you will flip and hurt yourself or another person.
My favourite thing was when we had a race to the end of the courts and you told us to stop on the line or else we would crash into the bush. Riding bikes with you was so much fun,"
Tyler
"Thank you for the course you provided to help us learn the skills to ride bikes safely. The safety lessons to help stay safe on the road when we are biking are very important. The epic games we played with you on the bikes were a fun way to learn. I really enjoyed it when Mr Hacker joined in the games we played on that day. I learned how to stay safe on the road by always staying on the left side of the road. Learning how to indicate with our hands to let other cyclists or cars know if we're turning this or that way is a new skill for me. I got better at riding around the big orange cones which you made as obstacles for us to face, thank you.
My favourite thing was having a free ride on our bike track."
Liam
"Thank you for teaching me how a bike works because I didn't know anything about the bike check - Air - Brakes - Chain - Drop - End plugs. When the first lesson started, I was so excited until I nearly fell off! By the way, once I fell off my bike at home and I scraped my knee. The graze was about 6cm long. It really did hurt.
The best thing I learned was how to look backwards and how to put a ball on a cone while I was riding. The most important thing I learned was the importance of safety when you are riding on the road. My favourite course was the second one when you needed to turn your head and guess the object on the card. My 2nd favourite thing was you teaching me and my classroom what to do on a bike."
Kaea
