Shoe tying can be a difficult task for children to learn. While most children learn to tie their shoes by the age of 6 or 7, some struggle with this task well into grade school. This problem is compounded by the fact that many types of shoes for children are equipped with hook-and-loop straps instead of laces. However, with the right tools and a bit of patience, you can teach your children how to tie their shoes.
Step 1
Cover a piece of construction paper with clear contact paper.
Step 2
Turn over the construction paper so the contact paper is on the bottom. Place a child's shoe on the construction paper and trace around it with an ink pen. Cut out the construction paper shoe with scissors along the marker line.
Step 3
Fold the construction paper shoe in half lengthwise. Unfold and punch five holes along each side of the crease. The positions of the holes should correspond with the eyelets of the child's shoe.
Step 4
Lace the construction paper shoe like a real shoe, but leave the ends loose.
Step 5
Instruct the child to cross the shoelaces, then loop the right lace under the left and back up. Point out that this action turns the laces into an "X."
Step 6
Tell the child to take the right shoelace and fold it into a loop, pinching it behind the X.
Step 7
Instruct the child to wrap the left shoelace loosely in front of the X, then behind it. Tell the child to fold the end of this shoelace into a loop, and run it under the front of the first loop.
Step 8
Tell the child to grasp both loops, and pull them out and down toward the construction paper shoe until the knot is tight.
Tips and Warnings
- Show the child how to complete each of the steps, then talk her through each step as she completes it herself. Children can get the basic idea from watching someone else tie a shoe, but they often learn best by completing the steps themselves. Praise the child for each completed step. This can help motivate the child to learn the entire process of tying a shoe.
Things You'll Need
- Child's shoe
- Construction paper
- Contact paper
- Ink pen
- Scissors
- Hole punch
- Shoelace
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