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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Does your child wear lace up shoes to school?

72 replies

Hulababy · 26/02/2010 15:33

And can they tie them for themselves?

Has driven me mad this week. So many of our infant school children wearing lace up shoes and trainers to school, and not being able to tie them for themselves.

Soggy laces from the rain - yuk! I hate having to bob down in a wet playground to tie them over and over again. My skirt gets soggy at the back. My hands get soggy and dirty.

I reckon we should ban children from having laces until they can tie them for themselves.

Grrr......

[Half in jest - not really criticising all my mums, dads and pupils - just incase anyone googles me, etc. But half not too..... )

OP posts:

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GrimmaTheNome · 26/02/2010 15:49

Not suprised you're fed up - I mean, its not exactly hard to get velcro shoes and trainers. Or those bungee things.

Lemonmeringue · 26/02/2010 15:57

I take your point. I thought it was almost impossible to get small shoes with laces (I have a tiny 9 year-old who'd like more grown-up looking trainers), but I'm obviously wrong.

My older, bigger child had lace-up trainers in Year 1 for a while, because I couldn't get any velcro ones to fit, and I sent in a note to her teacher to apologize if she asked for help (once a week, Games lesson) and she soon got the hang of them.

Lemonmeringue · 26/02/2010 15:58

The child got the hang of them, I think the teacher already knew how to do laces.

PrettyCandles · 26/02/2010 16:00

My dc would love to be able to wear lace-ups! They've both been able to tie laces since 6 or 7, but there are never any suitable shoes with laces. They're always told "next year", but every year, the smallest size with laces is a size bigger than the previous year.

Granted that velcro is convenient, and I quite see your point Hulababy, but the longer they wear velcros, then the longer it is before they are able to tie laces.

Maybe tying bows should be part of the school curriculum - I mean this seriously!

ABitBatty · 26/02/2010 16:04

You are joking! Infants in lace ups! My almost 12yo ds still insists on velcro because it takes him too long to fasten laces, which he only learnt to tie approx 9 mo ago!If I were a teacher I soo would not want to tie wet soggy laces.

cory · 26/02/2010 16:05

Ds (9) has to have lace-up piedro boots but because of dodgy joints is incapable of tying them up himself.

ABitBatty · 26/02/2010 16:06

Just seen what PrettyCandles has posted. I agree about teaching it at school, I left it til age 10 because I didn't think DS would be able to do it, now look at us! I have since heard the earlier you teach it the better?

Lemonmeringue · 26/02/2010 16:08

No, tying laces is part of getting dressed - it should be learned at home, so teachers can get on with teaching an already packed curriculum.

BariatricObama · 26/02/2010 16:10

i am sorry. i tried to get dd zip up or velcro winter boots but none of them fitted. so she is in lace up. i agree it is a pain.

Oblomov · 26/02/2010 16:26

Agree, tying laces is a lesson for home. Ds1(6) can't do them. Velcro it is, for him, for as long as I can get away with it !

Nymphadora · 26/02/2010 16:36

I think tying laces is learnt much later now. I was embarressed that dd2 has only just learnt at 8!

I hate velcro shoes and usually go for shoes with a buckle as they tend not to break.

LoveRoses · 26/02/2010 17:08

'Tis Velcro for dc - makes the early morning dash to school a bit easier. When they get to secondary school they can have shoes with laces if they so wish.

Besides, it's too much hassle searching for the laces if pulled out by dc or washing them when they get muddy or wondering what to do next/ replace them when the edges get frayed...

GrungeBlobPrimpants · 26/02/2010 17:22

I wouldn't have thought there was much of a market for infant-sized lace ups - give me velcro any day!

My dc's finally learnt how to tie laces at age 10 and 9 respectively, when they reached a shoe size at which velcro trainers were just non-existent

Clary · 26/02/2010 17:36

My DS1 has lace-ups for first time now - he is 10...

H/ever DD can do laces and she's 8. DS2 (6) not so much. He has a friend with lace-up trainers and she can do hers.

I think it's a matter of not learning till you have to - DS1's have nbeen velcro always so it's a vicious circle really.

Hence have tried to teach the other 2 but then if shoes are velcro there's no practice!

Think it's a lot to expect of infants tbh so you have my sympathy hula.

nappyaddict · 26/02/2010 17:46

I have always tried to get DS (3) lace up shoes for the reason that he can't undo them and take them off. Now I'm worrying all his teachers hate me!

notsoteenagemum · 26/02/2010 18:05

Ds has a had a few pairs of lace ups (not for school)because my Bil-to-be is 25 and cannot tie his own laces, my sister ties them for him!

RunningOutOfIdeas · 26/02/2010 18:10

DD (22 months) has a very cute pair of Converse boots, but I agree they are a pain to tie.

I can remember learning how to tie a bow in Y1. There was a teddy attached to a board, with a red ribbon round its neck. When I could show that I could do teddy's bow my name was written on the board.

lifeissweet · 26/02/2010 18:20

I teach year 1 and spent 10 minutes of every lunchtime for a week teaching one boy totie his laces because I got so sick of having to do it at the most inconvenient moments. I even mentioned in front of his mother that I would have to do this as I couldn't waste so much time tying and re-tying them. She smiled and thanked me, which was nice, but I had been hoping she might offer to help him at home too.

The only thing I find more irksome is tie-up P.E pumps. Why would you do that when I have 30 chn to get dressed for P.E - meet me halfway, lovely parents!

stealthsquiggle · 26/02/2010 18:27

We did home shoes (cheap lace-up canvas pumps) until we were sure DS could do them before we then went for lace-up school shoes - and even then it was only because the shoe shop lady (who really does know her stuff) convinced me that the lace-up option was a far better fit for DS's awkward-shaped feet than the only velcro option in his size/width fitting.

He still has velcro pumps, but lace-up trainers and football boots - but he is old enough now that the most his teacher has to do is to tell him to do his laces up - I would never have inflicted lace-ups on school earlier.

I may have problems with DD, though, because Mary-Jane style shoes just will not fit her feet, and I have a nasty sinking feeling that the only alternative 'school-type' shoes may be lace ups (she is fine for nursery in zip-up boots and velcro trainers).

heyhey79 · 26/02/2010 18:44

Aa a teacher, children who can't do up laces take up a lot of break time as where I work all children have indoor shoes too. It is a real help if parents either teach them how to tie their laces - not impossible for most with a little bribery - or send them with velcro or 'magic' laces.

BalloonSlayer · 26/02/2010 18:54

My DD (8) recently persuaded me to get her lace-up shoes from Clarks for her latest pair of school shoes. I know she can do laces but I was dubious, however I gave in as they were wonderfully soft.

It turned out she was not good enough at tying them and they were coming undone three times on the walk to school with her getting more and more frustrated: "But I tied them up!!!!" as if this reminder of their lacey duties would at once make them obediently assume a perfect bow.

I noticed this week that she has gone back to wearing her tatty old normal shoes. Words were exchanged.

I am but realise it's my own stupid fault for being persuaded against my better judgement and bought her a cheaper pair from Next.

DD however does not realise she has used up her "Conning Mum into Buying Unsuitable Footwear for School" card too early - she'll be wishing she saved it when she is 14, desperate for the latest craze and I am still putting her in T-bar patent leather.

Lemonmeringue · 26/02/2010 19:04

I have a dark secret, Hulababy. When I was in infants my mother used to lace me firmly into my shoes, but if I was bored I'd untie them and walk to the front of the class to have them retied by the teacher. Repeatedly.

littlebrownmouse · 26/02/2010 19:06

I'm a teacher, I never tie boys shoe laces, they're not generally wet from the rain in my experience - have you ever seen were the wee ends up when small boys stand and have a wee in a hurry at school?!

Far better all round to ask another small boy who can tie laces to do them (there's generally one or two, even in infant classes), they'll already have toilet germs on hands from rubbing them round the inside of the toilet, washing their hands badly or going to the toilet with gloves on and not washing hands at all cos germs don't go through gloves, obviously!!

tethersend · 26/02/2010 19:10

A great way to teach tying laces is to make each lace (ie left and right, or each half-lace) on a practice shoe a different colour.

JoInScotland · 26/02/2010 19:21

I'm the youngest of many and was desparate to learn how to tie my shoes like all my older brothers and sisters. I annoyed my closest in age sister (9 years older) to show me until she did, and I cracked it aged 5 or 6. It's not that hard surely, with enough practice and desire to learn?

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