[sophiasmum]

We are having trouble teaching DS to tie his shoelaces.

By the start of year 1 we taught DD1 & she got it pretty easily.

However we have been trying on & off all this year with DS, also in year 1, just turned 7. But he totally can't get past the first step which is tying the 2 laces together. Forget bunny ears or anything like that.

Are we expecting too much? How many 6-7 yr olds already know? Any tips to make it easier? Thank you.

[tazcan]

My almost 6 year old learnt how to do it fairly quickly a few months ago. We hadn't tried to teach her before that.

[Spotted Giraffe]

My independent girl learnt to do bows just before she turned 5. She ties her dressing gown every morning, but does not have shoes with shoelaces to do them. Interestingly, her teacher has just told us she has poor fine motor skills!

[3_for_me]

Ds1 learnt when he went in to a size 2 shoe because the velcro ones only went up to soze 1 . he would have been 7. It wasn't something I was prepared to stress over because it's something that he didn't need to know until he had to IYKWIM. As he was older when I taught him I only had to show him once and he got it, had I tried to teach him younger I suspect it would have been a much bigger ask!

[Guest_holy_j_*]

DD knows how to tie her shoes since 5.5. DS had a great deal of trouble I think because i was trying to teach him and he is left handed, but okay since 7.

[BronR]

My DS (nearly 7) can't tie his but I've never tried to teach him. My bad. I suppose I should try and teach him. He can certainly do knots.

I remember clearly I could tie mine before starting school at 5. Back in the dark ages before velcro.

But my tip would be that he has to need to do it on a daily basis. My experience is that when kids need to be able to do something they more often than not rise to the occasion

[qak]

I need to start this with DS nearly 6.
DD's OT suggested:
- use stiffer type laces
- different colour for each side til they get the idea
- not to do bunny ears as that is harder (making a separate loop in each hand)

(I had never heard of bunny ears until I saw a Kate Hudson movie where she inherited her sister's kids!)

[fairyflossfart]

1st up, why are there santa smilies?

2nd, try and get someone else to teach him. A family friend or someone. DD8yrs was about 5 when we started trying to teach her, but she just couldn't get it. Then one day at the bus stop waiting for the school bus, one of the boys noticed her shoe lace was undone and told her to sit down and he showed her how to do it herself. She got it straight away.

[*Tess*]

Have you tried showing him using two different coloured laces. He may be able to visualise it better then. That's what we did for my eldest sone who had the most trouble. It seemed to help.

Also see if you can find the instructions in pictures (maybe on the internet?) so they can refer to them as they go along. I had a little book with pictures sequenced in it that my youngest daughter loved to follow. She taught herself at 4 but it did help that she had seen her older siblings doing it I think.

[mummacat]

We had to teach DS1 at 5 as his school they have to wear lace up shoes and the teaches do not tie their shoes.

We broke down tying shoes to 3 steps;

1 - tie the 2 laces to together (the cross over)

2 - make 2 bunny ears and tie them together

3 - tie the double knot

We started with him only doing step 1 until he was happy then he did step 3 to practice and once he could do the double knot he did step 2 with me holding the laces and then I gradually stopped holding when he was doing the bunnies ears and he didn't even notice I was not helping anymore. We celebrated every successful step of him doing it himself. He also got a reward of a hot wheels car once he could tie his shoes by himself for a week. It gave him something to aim for.

I think the key is practice everyday and make it fun for them (even if you are screaming on the inside). It is not easy to learn or is it easy to teach as we are so accustom to just doing it.

I know Baby Bunting also has a shoe lace tying toy that is a shoe with different colour laces that kids can practice on.

I also second that it is harder with some shoe laces DS1 can now easily do his sneakers which have a longer rounder lace while he still has to practice on his black school shoes that are a flatter shorter lace.

Good luck