Here at St. Louis BWorks, newcomers are often intrigued to learn that we don’t just give children and teens bikes; we provide them with an in-depth, six-session bike class. It’s always a joy to explain a little bit about what the six weeks of Earn-A-Bike and Earn-A-Computer, and the four weeks of Learn-To-Ride, involve for each group of students who commits to the course.
But just a couple weeks ago some of our most recent Earn-A-Bike graduates, a group of 10 students at Hanrahan Elementary who completed the course this fall as part of their school day, offered a fresh look at what the six days of Earn-A-Bike are like.
Their teacher, Ms. Evelyn Clark, had each participant write a short reflection immediately after each Tuesday afternoon class at the school. As BWorks team members packed up supplies each week, Ms. Clark would hand out fresh, bicycle-adorned writing pages to each student so they could jot down some thoughts from that day’s bike lesson.
This was wonderful to see in the moment — and the cherry on top was that Ms. Clark shared a copy of the class reflections with our Earn-A-Bike teachers on her students’ graduation day from BWorks earlier this month. Now that we’ve had a chance to sit with our students’ perspectives, we are sharing a few highlights here with Ms. Clark’s blessing. Together these young people offer a unique window into what the Earn-A-Bike experience is like — from the perspectives of some participants themselves.
Day 1
Each reflection page, each week, prompted the BWorks students in Ms. Clark’s class to share a reflection or “wondering.” We love that phrasing (wondering) for having curiosity and questions, and student C came away from Day 1 with lots of interest in bike gears.
“A wondering I had was ‘why do bikes have gears,’ C wrote, adding that he really wanted to learn what they do. Meanwhile, “I never knew there was a lot of parts to a bike,” wrote classmate L, “but today I learned that there are. … I never found bikes interesting like that, but now I find them very interesting.” Student T added, “I got to do a lot of things. I hope it is just as fun next time.”
D wrote, “I liked taking the bike apart and trying to put it back together with my friends. It was a good bonding experience.” M added, “I was the 2nd person to be done building and taking apart [a bike]. I can’t wait for Day 2.”
Day 2
M had lots more takeaways the next week. “Today I learned how to repair a tire,” she wrote, “and that it takes time to repair it.” L came away with confidence, writing that “fixing a tire is really easy.”
He added, “I didn’t think it would be as fun as it was to build a bike if I’m being honest.”
D was proud too, especially after Mr. Mark led the group in a special “one-handed tire challenge” after the kids had first mastered the basics of fixing a flat. D wrote, “I even did it with one hand.” He finished his reflection zooming out a bit: “If you’re reading this, have fun, enjoy, don’t rush to grow up.”
K zoomed in on some key specifics from Day 2: “We used a tool called a lever and used it to get the tire in and out. We used rubber cement to patch up a hole in the tire.”
Day 3
J perhaps summed this day up the best, writing in a single breathless sentence, no commas needed, that “we raced we watched something fun we decorated our helmet we talked and had fun.”
T seemed to be becoming a believer: “We got to paint our helmets. This is a fun program. I hope it is fun next time too.” C ended Day 3 of class with safety on his mind: “One thing I learned today was road signs and how to stay safe.” So did M, who listed safety lessons “for all different things, like potholes, car doors and the train and the train tracks.”
But L’s closing Day 3 reflection may have taken the cake, with her focus on winning a hand-signal-focused game of Simon Says. “Even as a girl, you can still beat boys.”
Day 4
Overall, the Day 4 reflections gained steam. “I got to ride my bike,” began M, who added that while brake adjustments and vocabulary were also part of the day, “next class [Day 5] we ride our bikes the whole class period. I can’t wait.”
K was similarly enamored with Day 4, writing that she “went outside to ride our bikes, and we learned how to use our brakes. My bike is all red with [some] white. It was fun to go outside.”
C, with his Day 1 “wondering” about gears, got his answer on Day 4. “One thing I learned was how brakes work and how to fix them. I also got to ride my bike and [learn] how to change gears.”
D said he was glad that “we finally got to ride the bikes,” adding, “I love this program and my bike is kinda fast.”
Days 5 and 6
By the time Ms. Clark’s wonderful students reached the final two weeks of the course, the on-bike focus was so all-encompassing that the on-paper reflections ceased at that point, with any extra few minutes always being taken up by biking, safety checks, more biking and plenty of combo-lock setting, hot-chocolate drinking, and riding together around the neighborhood surrounding the school.
But one of the final reflections Ms. Clark included in the wonderful packet she gave us on Day 6 includes an especially moving report from student L.
“It’s been a while since I rode a bike, but everybody encouraged me that I could do it. … All my friends were like, “You got this, come on L____.”
We’re happy to report that indeed, L got this, and was riding like a champion by Day 6.
We’re so proud of this crew and excited to work with some more of their classmates beginning next month at Hanrahan Elementary. Big thanks to BWorks teacher Mark Smith and Hanrahan teacher Evelyn Clark for all their dedication to these fantastic students.
