Learning to Cycle: Are Physical Activity and Birth Order Related to the Age of Learning How to Ride a Bicycle?

Mercê, Cristiana; Branco, Marco; Chelo, David; Lopes, Frederico; Rodrigues, Luís Paulo; Cordovil, Rita

doi:10.3390/children8060487

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 33 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Changes in the number of children per family, in the cultural ideals of parenthood and of parental levels of supervision and engagement in play should also be considered ( 55 ). For instance, it has been shown that younger siblings usually learn to cycle earlier than older siblings and only children ( 56 ). Homes, families and schools are powerful environments for empowering cycling enculturation ( 45 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning to Cycle: A Cross-Cultural and Cross-Generational Comparison

Cordovil

Mercê

Branco

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundLearning to cycle is an important milestone for children, but the popularity of cycling and the environmental factors that promote the development and practice of this foundational movement skill vary among cultures and across time. This present study aimed to investigate if country of residence and the generation in which a person was born influence the age at which people learn to cycle.MethodsData were collected through an online survey between November 2019 and December 2020. For this study, a total of 9,589 responses were obtained for adults (self-report) and children (parental report) living in 10 countries (Portugal, Italy, Brazil, Finland, Spain, Belgium, United Kingdom, Mexico, Croatia, and the Netherlands). Participants were grouped according to their year of birth with 20-year periods approximately corresponding to 3 generations: 1960–79 (generation X; n = 2,214); 1980–99 (generation Y; n = 3,994); 2000–2019 (generation Z; n = 3,381).ResultsA two-way ANOVA showed a significant effect of country, F(9,8628) = 90.17, p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.086, and generation, F(2,8628) = 47.21, p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.122, on the age at which individuals learn to cycle. Countries with the lowest learning age were the Netherlands, Finland and Belgium and countries with the highest learning age were Brazil and Mexico. Furthermore, the age at which one learns to cycle has decreased across generations. There was also a significant country x generation interaction effect on learning age, F(18,8628) = 2.90, p < 0.001; however, this effect was negligible (ηp2 = 0.006).ConclusionsThese findings support the socio-ecological perspective that learning to cycle is a process affected by both proximal and distal influences, including individual, environment and time.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning to Cycle: A Cross-Cultural and Cross-Generational Comparison

Cordovil

Mercê

Branco

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The data collection was carried out within the scope of the Learning to Cycle project (L2Cycle), which developed a retrospective online survey to access the cycle LA [26]. This retrospective method has been used before to collect the LA of several other milestones, e.g., roll over, sit up, stand alone, walk, first words, smiling or crawling [27,28].…”

Section: Surveymentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning to Cycle: From Training Wheels to Balance Bike

Mercê

Branco

Chelo

et al. 2022

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Learning to cycle is an important milestone in a child’s life, so it is important to allow them to explore cycling as soon as possible. The use of a bicycle with training wheels (BTW) for learning to cycling is an old approach practiced worldwide. Most recently, a new approach using the balance bike (BB) has received increased attention, and several entities believe that this could be most efficient. Drawing on the work of Bronfenbrenner (1995) and Newel (1986), this study aimed to analyse the effect of BB’s use on the learning process of cycling independently. Methods: Data were collected in Portugal from an online structured survey between November 2019 and June 2020. Results: A total of 2005 responses were obtained for adults and children (parental response). Results revealed that when the BB’s approach was used, learning age (LA) occurred earlier (M = 4.16 ± 1.34 years) than with the BTW’s approach (M = 5.97 ± 2.16 years) (p < 0.001); or than when there was only the single use of the traditional bicycle (M =7.27 ± 3.74 years) (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Children who used the BB as the first bike had a significantly lower LA than children who did not use it (p < 0.001). To maximize its effects, the BB should be used in the beginning of the learning process.

show abstract

“…It could also be a control parameter for learning how to cycle. Over the years, the process of learning to cycle has undergone changes [ 12 ]. In more recent times, a notable change has been the introduction of the balance bike (BB).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning to Cycle: Is Velocity a Control Parameter for Children’s Cycle Patterns on the Balance Bike?

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The balance bike (BB) has been pointed out as being the most efficient learning bicycle due to its inherent stimulation of balance. However, the process of acquiring the control of balance on the BB has not been explored. This study aimed to: (i) categorize the cycle patterns of children on the BB, (ii) compare the cycle patterns in different stages of learning (before and after six sessions of a BB practice program), and (iii) verify whether velocity is a control parameter leading to transitions between different cycle patterns on a BB. The data were collected during the Learning to Cycle program from 12 children aged 6.06 ± 1.25 years. The velocity was measured using an inertial sensor. Seven different movement patterns were captured and categorized through video analysis. After practice, there was an increase in the mean number of different patterns and in the global mean and maximum velocity. These were interpreted as an improvement of the motor competence in the use of the BB. The results obtained support the hypothesis that velocity is a control parameter which leads to the emergence of diverse patterns of behavior. As the speed increased, the amount of foot contact with the ground became less frequent and the locomotor modes that imply that longer flight phases began to emerge.

show abstract

Learning to Cycle: Are Physical Activity and Birth Order Related to the Age of Learning How to Ride a Bicycle?

Cited by 6 publications

References 33 publications

Learning to Cycle: A Cross-Cultural and Cross-Generational Comparison

Learning to Cycle: A Cross-Cultural and Cross-Generational Comparison

Learning to Cycle: From Training Wheels to Balance Bike

Learning to Cycle: Is Velocity a Control Parameter for Children’s Cycle Patterns on the Balance Bike?

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About