Learning how to tie shoelaces is one of those little things in life that seem easy to other children but to our dyspraxic kids it’s a huge challenge. But never fear, there are more ways to deal with this problem than you probably think. Bunny Ears Lacing: This is a very simple and easy pattern. Start by making two loops (one loop on either side) that are roughly the same size. Then tie the loops together at the top of the shoe. This pattern gives a clean look to your shoe. If the laces are too short, they won’t fit, and the shoe won’t provide a firm grip on your foot. When the laces are too long, they are not only hard to manage and keep tidy, but they also pose a tripping hazard. You can accidentally trip on your laces and fall.

I saw this same method a few times on different videos and it looked way too complicated when it was broken down. However, I think this video is the best one at showing it simply. There’s no way I’m doing it in 1 second though! This seems to be the easiest way to teach a child to tie their laces–my daughter is almost there with this method after only a few attempts 🙂 . There are no complicated instructions; it’s just a question of practice and remembering each small step. Go take a look! Her presentation is best for younger kids, but I love her enthusiasm. She also recognises that as soon as the child gets fidgety that it’s enough of a lesson for the day, and that no child is going to learn how to tie shoelaces in one lesson.You don’t need any added hurdles when learning how to tie shoelaces, so start with just one shoe that your child isn’t wearing. You can then position it wherever is comfortable for your child. This cheeky little method just sneaked its way into the article as a new way to tie laces. Well, it’s new to me. So new that I haven’t tried it yet so I can’t comment on how effective it is, but my goodness it looks soooo much easier. If you’re teaching your child, create a practice board by drawing the eyelets of a shoe on a piece of paper and threading the laces through to give a flat surface to practise on. This is also a great way to make learning more fun for your little one.

You can try and make the whole shoelace-tying lesson more fun by using some props. We use the Melissa & Doug wooden shoe for our practising, as it’s a bit more robust for practising and you don’t have to worry about nasties on the bottom of shoes getting germs onto the carpet or your kids hands.Lacing styles can make or break your sneaker game. Depending on the type of shoe you have, there are numerous lace-up styles you can try out. Why does the length of your shoelaces matter? As long as they are long enough to go through all the eyelets, isn’t that about it? It requires tying a half knot to begin, making a loop from each lace (so they look like bunny ears), and then tying the loops together. But, although Mummy found them challenging to initially fit, little one now uses them very easily. You really just need to pull them on both sides until they are tight enough, and the coil shape keeps them in place. Finding the right length of shoelaces is more than just fitting the lace into all the eyelets. The right length of laces sits perfectly on your shoe, and managing the excess laces is often easy with numerous options available.

When counting eyelets, most users forget to consider the distance between the eyelets. Some shoes like the Nike Air Presto have five eyelets. According to the size chart, you would need 50” laces. But you will find the laces are short. The Nike Air Presto actually needs 55” laces because the distance between the eyelets is wide. In other shoes and sneakers, the distance is narrow, and you should go with shorter laces on this occasion. What To Do If You Get the Wrong Length of Laces?We’ll take a look at five different ways to teach shoe tying that are very accessible to kids who are fine motor-skills challenged, and how we can get around the problem until they nail it. Because they will! It will take them longer than others, but they will be able to do it. If you have the current pair of laces for your sneakers, you can measure the length of the laces from end to end to get the right length of replacement. It’s a sure-fire way to get the exact length of replacement laces as the existing ones. But this method only works if you have the current laces. Don’t worry if there is only a few cm’s difference in the replacement laces, either way you’ll be fine! Criss-Cross Lacing: This pattern is similar to the straight lacing, but you cross the laces over each other at the top of the shoe. To create this pattern, thread one lace through the eyelets on one side of the shoe, and the other lace through the eyelets on the other side of the shoe. Cross the laces over each other at the top and tie them off. This shoetying method is broken down into easy steps, and requires you, as the teacher, to do a bit of preparation. So you can either colour in or mark dots on one side of the lace, and make a knot on the other side. I like the idea that there are recognisable visual clues–great for dyspraxic kids. There is one slight downside to using the eyelet method above to determine the ideal length of laces you need for your shoes. It doesn’t factor in several considerations that will ultimately affect the length of the laces. Lacing style

Make sure you’re comfortable tying regular shoelaces before beginning to practise on different shoe styles, like trainers and boots. I haven’t tried this shoetying method with my little one yet as she’s getting on well with the first video, but it’s another classic way to do it. On the face of it, it looks easier than the traditional way, but hey, my mind doesn’t work in the same way that a dyspraxic child’s does. Once your child’s feet get bigger, it’s likely that finding shoes and trainers that do up with velcro is going to become increasingly difficult. And learning to tie their shoes isn’t going to happen overnight, so what do you do? The right length of laces also gives your shoe that elegant and organized look. They also work perfectly with any lacing designs you might have in mind. Practising with pipe cleaners , a skipping rope or two different-coloured ribbon lengths is a great way to help with learning how to tie your shoes – these are slightly sturdier material s which can help keep each loop in place while you’re learning . I t also means you can practise on the go!I’ve also heard that using pipecleaners to practice with (in the shoes instead of laces) is a good idea. The pipecleaners stay in place much better so it cuts down on frustration while your kids practice. Straight Lacing: This is the most basic shoelace pattern and is very easy to do. Simply lace your shoes straight up the middle of each eyelet, and tie them off at the top. Don’t have the existing laces? There’s another way. Lace-up your shoes with a piece of string or yarn until it looks fine. Once you set it up the same way, you want to lace up the new laces, remove the yarn and measure it. It’s a bit tedious, but it gets the job done. Factors that Could Affect Shoelace Length