Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: Oakhurst STEAM Academy Receives All Kids Bike Set Of Wheels And Helmets

Davidson NC

04 May, 2022

6:33 PM

Description

Press release from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: 5/4/2022 Oakhurst celebrates receiving 24 bikes and helmets for students. Oakhurst STEAM Academy now has 24 child-size bicycles, one adult-size bicycle and corresponding helmets to help kindergarteners and first-graders learn how to ride. The campus is one of 30 in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools that has received the bikes in an effort to give students a leg up on two wheels. The bikes are from Strider, and they don't come with training wheels. "They are striding bikes where they're just using their feet," said Keith Kraemer, health and physical education resource teacher. The kindergartners learn to balance using their feet, which prepares them for first grade when pedals are easily installed. "It's a three- or four-week program where they'll start with using their feet and striding to get that balance, and then the teacher can take one bolt out, throw the pedals on with one bolt, and it gets them into riding a bike quicker than training wheels," said Kraemer. The bike practice also ensures that students are active, an imperative part of a healthy life. "This gets kids outside and into fresh air where we want them to play, and it's giving them a life skill they can use for the rest of their life," Kraemer said. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 14 million children are considered obese, and one of the best ways to combat obesity is exercise. "This is great exercise," Kraemer said. The All Kids Bike Strider bikes were fully funded with the help of Trips for Kids and the Mecklenburg County Health Department through the Safe Routes to Schools program. The Charlotte Department of Transportation and private donors have also assisted in getting the bike program into various schools in the district. The bikes were unveiled to students May 4, eliciting screams and cheers of joy from the kindergarten students. Several children were able to hop right on the bikes and demonstrate how well they could stride on their new wheels. The bike sets stay on campus to serve the largest number of students possible. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education members Carol Sawyer and Jennifer De La Jara and CMS Athletic Director Ericia Turner attended to support the new program. This press release was produced by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. The views expressed here are the author's own.