Cruisin' at Concord Elementary

Concord Elementary School, located in South Park, is participating in Cascade's Basics of Bicycling program this year, but they are doing things a little differently. Instead of offering the course through a P.E. class as is usually done, avid cyclist and 5th grade teacher Kate Ayers has taken the bike program on as part of her regular curriculum, offering it to her class as well as another 5th grade class and two after school groups (one 3rd grade & one 4th).

Lucky for me, this meant that she needed some extra hands to help her with the program. Thus I spent last Thursday out in the tentative early spring sun running around on a playground, holding stop signs, fitting helmets, and reveling in the contagious joy of kids on wheels.

There were four consecutive classes of about 25 kids each. In the session we were working on "scanning" (for cars, pedestrians, etc.) and "rock dodge" (avoiding road hazards). I was impressed at the caliber of riding I saw, even from kids who had just tried two wheels for the first time the week before.

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The bikes are here!

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Kate, teaching the Rock Dodge.