Thing shoelaces reliably, what age?

[GiraffeCup]

I was just wondering what age kids "should" be able to tie their shoelaces?

Don't tell me your 15 months old could do this behind their back. Realistic answers please 🥺

I'm in my fifties and still get them in a knot sometimes, if that helps!

I think there is a difference between being able to to it and being willing to.

Or there was for my kids anyway.

They could physically do it from around 6/7 but were too lazy/impatient to do it every day reliably until 8

I have two DS, one could do it at about age 9 because he wore football boots a lot. The other doesn't have great fine motor skills and was about 12 before he could do it reliably.

Dc 1 was 8ish
Dc2 10 and even now makes a bit of a faff doing it.
Dc3 was 5 super independent has to do everything themselves
Dc4 now 5 can't do them

We cover shoelaces when we do knots with Cubs. (8-10yos). Some can do it before then.

I tie a lot of walking boot laces as they can do it theoretically, but not tight enough.

My DS was about 6, becuase he wanted lace up shoes, so was committed to learn.

7ish I reckon. That's when we stopped buying velcro trainers for PE.

Eldest was 4 ( sorry, but he's that kind of child) youngest was 7 but his friend, also 7, had a complete strop because he couldn't do his laces up. Walking boots are a bit trickier with the hooks to catch the laces around and keep them tight.

I remember I was 5 when I mastered it as I can still picture myself lacing them up before starting school and showing my nana I could do so.

I reckon mine were both nearer 10/11

I ended up getting elastic laces for secondary shoes - took a few more years into secondary - but there's dyspraxia in family.

DD2 who doesn't have it was around 7.

Also turned out method I'd be taught as a child and struggled with - was actaully harder than method DH had been taught and the kids all got on better with DH method - it's two loops and some step for DH - where as I was one loop and round and under and through.

Daughter is 5 and a half, so might start teaching her then 👍👍

I've no idea about when children 'should' be able to tie shoelaces. I imagine like many skills it's going to vary greatly between children, and also that children will only get it if they are given opportunity to practice. I think the ubiquity of velcro fastenings and elastic laces in kids' shoes has decreased the opportunity for many kids to practice.

I remember learning to tie my laces before starting school; I would have been around 4. I can't remember whether my parents checked / tightened laces after I'd done them. I think it was pretty much expected that kids could deal with their own shoes once at school, and shoes were generally either laced or buckled, so either way they needed some dexterity to fasten and undo.

Of my kids, one was 4 when they understood how to tie the thing and could tie a shoelace, but their knot would need some 'checking' by an adult for a good few months before they were reliably secure.

Our other one didn't show any interest until they were about six and liked a pair of lace up trainers, so was then very motivated to learn and didn't take very long to get to the stage of tying them well enough to do it all themself without any adult intervention.

DS was probably 8 or 9. He learnt approximately 5 minutes after I'd bought him some Velcro school shoes.

DD (3 years younger) learnt abut 2 minutes before him, because she is a show off over achiever who won't be overshadowed by a boy.

Probably about 8. But she still does it with two ‘bunny ears’ rather than ‘properly’ despite now being a 26yo engineer who can tie sailing knots.

DS was 4 and we were a bit shocked as he didn't find most things using fine motor skills very easy.

Maybe I'll wait a bit, and then have laces only over the summer holidays, so she can go into Year 1 with laces and able to tie them👌

My daughter could tie her shoes when she started Reception, so nearly 5. I had no family with young children, and only one close friend with a child of a similar age, and I assumed it was one of the things all children could do when they started school, like being able to tell the time, reading, knowing their address and phone number etc.

DS is 8 and has just cracked it with the help of his OT (he’s autistic, has adhd and dyspraxia and hypermobility so it was quite the challenge!)

My AuDHD child can’t do his. He’s 14. Not for want of trying or indeed me trying to teach him. He just can’t seem to get the hang of it. It does worry me and he’s embarrassed about it.

Fiercely independent DD could tie her own shoes by 5yo

Laid back DS however has to be bought slip ons for secondary school

Kids can't tell the time at 4 usually

@GiraffeCup@GiraffeCupI didnt realise that at the time. As I said, it was one of a number of things I assumed all children were taught before starting school. I expect I was basing my assumptions of what I was able to do when I started school, which was by no means unusual. It wasn’t difficult to teach my daughter to tell the time, and several of the other children in her class were able to do this when they started.

I'd say standard range is 6-10.
I do have to do a few at Brownies. Sometimes it's just getting the tension right rather than not knowing the technique.

DS14 is still working on it...he's dyspraxic
DS11 is still hit and miss on getting the tension right and can struggle on low-energy days. He's "only" diagnosed with dyslexia but does struggle with executive function type tasks.

1st twin about 7 but probably could do it earlier if she has tried. 2nd twin just mastered it at 11 after trying on and off for years, he has great difficulty with this sort of thing.