How to Tie Shoes

I still have the book that I had when I was that age... I remember asking my mom to read it most days... it was my favorite...

the first page says..

I know how to tie my shoe
I take the loop
And push it through.
It's very hard
To make it stay,
Because my thumb
Gets in the way!

The book is called "Tie My Shoe"
a Rand McNally Junior Elf Book -- not sure if it is still out there or not!

We used a book called Red Lace Yellow Lace. It actually has shoe laces in the book with little verses to help your child remember the step-by-step instructions. It worked great for us. Here's a link:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Red-Lace-Yellow-Lace/Mik...

About this time last year, I bought my then-4-year-old a book called What Will I Do If I Can't Tie My Shoe? from Scholastic books. He loved it. He sorta knew how to tie his shoes before starting kindergarten last fall. Not to worry, though... I found out that most kids in his kindergarten class - even those a year older than him (due to his summer birthday) - did not know how to tie their shoes! The teachers don't really expect it but they do expect the children to practice and learn how to do it within a few months. They do work with the children. Double-knotting so the shoes don't come untied at school is a Good Thing. :-)

Hi L.,
I have two boys going off to K in the fall and have to work on this too! I have a book they just love from Usborne Books. It's called Tie-a-bow Book (#503307). It has all of the same characters from some of their phonics favorites in different situations with other visual discrimination challenges along the way. Check out my website at www.ubah.com/b2944 for the online catalog with all kinds of awesome books for his age. I give away as many of these books as I possible can through Home Parties.
Good luck!
C.

We say,

"One little loop, what do you do?
Tie the lace around and pull it through
Now you've made a bow, and you've tied your shoe!"

Just practice. It's hard work being a kid.

Good luck!
J.

L.,
I sell products for BabyCrazy (we are a home party plan company) and we have a tie-up shoe that our customers have really liked for helping their little ones to learn with. It has bright colors and easy to take places so they can practice on the go. And since it isn't an actual shoe you don't have to worry about getting dirt on their clothes.
Here is the link. If you have any questions please feel free to ask. Thanks

www.iambabycrazy.com/adecker
Product # PT5319
Tie-Up Shoe
A.

I taught my kids the bunny ears. A few of the ladies have told you how to do it.

I was taught with a book that had laces. My mom (being a teaching assistant) made us our own things to learn how to tie shoes. Paper plates with shoe laces just make some holes in the plate and lace them up and then do the bunny ears.

very cheap and fun. we always sang the songs to go with it also. Ladies have gave you some good ideas.

good luck

Our local library had the greatest "shoe" book. It was a shoe with laces so that it faced the child just like their real shoe does. And of course it had instructions included. Greatest thing. Call your local library, the childrens sections. I'm sure they will know what you are talking about.
Good Luck.

ppchlb

There are lots of things out there to teach how to tie shoes. Check WalMart or some toy store. I have seen many things that have buttons to button, shoes to tie, zippers to zip, etc. The main thing is to get behind the child or object to tie, so they don't learn it backwards. You don't tie your shoes from in front of you and neither will they.

My children were both required to learn to tie their shoes before I would "let" them go to kindergarten. I was a kindergarten teacher for awhile and tying 27 pairs of shoes and zipping 27 coats is VERY time consuming! We did just one loop, called it a bunny, then chased it around the tree with the other string and down the hole, poke it with your finger and pull. My oldest daughter was one of the only ones in her class that came to kindergarten tying shoes and was designated the "shoe helper." She was so proud and even got an award for it!

Hi L.,
I bought a book for my daughter that has a picture of a shoe with two different colored shoe laces and step by step instructions so your child will actually get the hands on experience...I haven't tried the book yet. However, when I do, I will try to do it with her every day and see if it helps????
Good luck!
T.

there's the easy way to tie shoes ( tie to 2 loops together afterthe frist knot) but some kindergartens dont allow that method. So, get yourself tie shoes, sit beside the kid and walk him thru it every time (him trying to tie his shoes as you tie yours.

We made one loop and said "One Bunny Ear", then the second loop "Two Bunny Ears" ... we made up little rhymes to go along. We rarely used velcro shoes so we did the Bunny Ear thing very early, even when I tied their shoes. Result ... one of my children learned to tie shoes at 4. Good Luck!

There was one Spongebob episode where Spongebob had to tie his shoes. There was a song teaching how to tie shoes...When my son was learning to tie his shoes, I told him it is over-under-pull (for the knot), right ear, left ear, over-under-pull. I hope that helps...

Curses to velcro!! My daughter is now 9. I taught her how to tie her shoes at the age of 3 and it literally took her about 3 tries. Ive heard the story about the bunnies hopping around each other and going into their burrow but couldn't remember it so I made up my own about worms dancing with each other. Apparently it worked. I guess use what he likes, a child's imagination is extraordinary and telling him its anything but a shoelace will be fun and his little mind will actually picture it. Remember to reassure him that little hands need practice at some things so he doesn't get frustrated. Good luck -H.-

In my pre-k class I have taught most of my class to tie their shoes. We used something similar to the red lace yellow lace thing. It's important to have the strings on the end be different colors. First teach him to cross them and put one under and pull. Then once he has mastered that, show him how to make a loop and hold it. After that, it gets more difficult. Some make two bunny ears and cross the loops, others do the loop, pull through and pull. Whatever works best. The most important thing is to work on it every day.

Good for you for wanting to teach him and get him ready. My mom teaches lower-el and always told the parents to teach their kids to tie their shoes or buy velcro because she didn't want to be tieing 24 pairs of shoes every day.
I like the double-loop-knot for little kids. Make a loop out of each lace and then just tie them in a knot. It's easier than the loop-around thing we are used to.

I taught 3 & 4 year olds and I had them take one of their shoes and trace it on a piece of heavy cardboard. They cut it out, with some help, if the the cardboard is really heavy. Then, I punched 6 holes in the cardboard shoe and put a lace in the shoe. THAT'S how they learned. My Abbie likes to actually step on the cardboard shoe as if to tie it if she were wearing it herself.

i went through this last year with my son before he started kindergarden. we told him we were going to teach him how to tie a bunny to his shoes.
1st. tell him to make the loops for the bunny ears
2nd. tell him to swoop the ears together
3rd. tell him to pull them tight so the bunny can't get away.

that's all there is to it, my son mastered tieing his shoes in 2 days. good luck.

My son just turned 6 and I still look for tie alternatives. He has a really great pair of Nike's that are elastic slide in style, the elastics kind of look like laces. They fit great and he can get them on himself. Skecher's makes some as well, but they are much harder to get into. Otherwise, just make up a rhyme or descriptive phrases for the steps. We've worked on "Criss cross applesauce, pull it tight, make a tree, run around it, through the hole and pull it tight again"(and criss cross applesauce again for a double knot).

Adam Sandler's Big Daddy classic....loop, swoop and pull.

The best way is to teach him tying a shoe that is off of his foot and in front of him. It sometimes helps to have a different color of lace running up each side of the shoe. Also do it in steps. One week teach him to make an x then put one lace under the bridge and pull and that would be the only thing you practiced until the next week when he would be ready to make a loop.

Several years ago I found some shoe strings with bunnies on them. They came in a package that had instructions on how to make bunny ears when you tied your shoes. I don't even know if they have them any more but it was a fun way for our youngest to learn!!

my son took occupational therapy and was taught to make a loop with the one...it was the tree. The other shoelace is the dog on a leash and he runs around the tree and gets stuck. You go to help by pushing it thru and pulling. He learned in one ot session.