Lesson 5:
Swerving
Parents' Instructions
Swerving Background
Thirty percent of all automobile-bicycle collisions involving children under 15 occur when a child turns unpredictably into the path of faster moving traffic.
Parent/Child Activity
Discuss:
Before swerving to make a turn, change lanes or avoid an obstacle, look back over your shoulder to be sure the road is clear of traffic, signal and look again.
Practice:
Take your children to a safe parking lot or playground. Stand behind them while they ride along a straight painted line. Hold up numbered or colored cards and have them practice looking back over their shoulder and telling you the number or color of the card -- without riding off the painted line. Next, have your children practice the lane change process: Look back over the shoulder, signal, look again, then change lanes. Children should not be allowed to ride their bikes on the street until they have mastered this skill.
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