Ahh... kids and bycicling. Alright, here is my story/take.
I moved to Canada at the age of 11 from Ukraine. There, everybody walked to school, and everyone did whatever they wanted to.
At the age of 7, I started walking to school and back - as did 99% of the kids. We would be outside playing and riding bicycles and our parents wouldn't care. There were no helmets. Most bikes were like touring bikes you see here, or imitations of the BMX bike. None of us cared. We had fun. And that's what it's all about.
I think here, in Canada, kids are 'babied' too much.