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| Introduction |
Students learn two skills at this station.
- Checking for cross traffic and waiting until it
is safe to turn before entering a roadway.
- Pushing off quickly and smoothly from a stop.
Riding out from a driveway, sidewalk or between parked
cars without yielding to cross traffic is a major cause of
serious bike/car accidents for young cyclists, even on
quiet residential streets. Practicing quick starts also
improves safety.
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| Station Leader Instructions |
- Have students leave their bikes in line at the
start and group them where the driveway intersects the
street. Tell any non-riding children that they can
walk through the course as though they are on bikes.
- Tell the students to imagine that they are in a driveway
in their neighborhood. Note that there is no stop sign
where the driveway ends. Ask: "Does this mean it's okay
to ride out into the street without stopping?"
- Briefly explain what yielding to cross traffic
means. Why can't they just assume that drivers
will see them even on quiet streets?
- Walk them down the "driveway" in a group. Point out
that because of the parked cars (or other sight
obstructions), they can't see cross traffic from the
curb, so they need to come out slowly until
they can see whether cars are coming.
- Have volunteers with car props demonstrate when
"cars are coming" and when the coast is clear. Ask
the students to check for cross traffic by looking
left, right and left again. (Note: Later groups
will have done both at the previous stations.)
- Show them what to do when no cars are coming.
Cross both lanes and turn left, moving over to
the right of the "street" (the correct position
for beginning cyclists). Then show them the route they
should use back to the start of the course.
- Before the children start riding through, work out
partners for any children with helmets only. Give
everyone a hot tip for quick, smooth starts: position
one pedal at "2 o'clock" and push off!
- Position yourself across the "street" from the
"driveway". Give encouraging feedback and give
specific pointers to each child. For example, say:
"Always look left first, then right, then left again
until it's safe to go."
- Make sure they come all the way over to the
right of the roadway as they turn.
- Keep the children moving through the station
quickly.
- After a child has mastered driveway yielding,
focus on their pedal position and pushing off
quickly. Challenge the most confident riders by
having them make a right turn instead. (Which
direction needs to be clear to do this?)
- Hand signals are not needed here although
it's okay if children use them.
- Before each group rotates emphasize that at this
station they've learned an important traffic rule to
keep practicing: Always yield when other traffic
has the right of way.
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| Volunteer Instructions |
Three volunteers are needed at this station.
- Volunteer at the beginning of the course.
- Start students through and keep the line moving.
Have the next student start as the previous one starts to
turn left at the driveway.
- Help students practice quick, smooth starts. The key to
a smooth start is to have one pedal slightly forward from
straight up, then push off with the other foot.
- Facilitate sharing of bikes so that bike-less
children with helmets get a turn after their partners have
gone through, but before the first in the group starts
around again.
- Be sure students stop safely at the end of the
course and get out of the way while waiting for their
turn.
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- Two volunteers with car props.
- Stand at the designated points with the car props.
Vary whether the car is visible or invisible (held sideways)
as the cyclist checks for traffic when emerging from the
driveway.
- Challenge the good cyclists and be gentler with the
others, but keep the line moving. Don't make the cyclist
look back and forth too many times before the coast is
clear.
- After the first run-through, you could add brake or
tire squealing sound effects if a child starts out of the
driveway before you turned your car sideways.
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| Hints |
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Non-riding children can learn the key yielding skills too.
So, invite them to line up and walk through as if they are
cyclists. Make sure they understand the difference between
pedestrian and vehicle/bicycle right of way rules.
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| Station Layout |
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