Teaching children to put socks and shoes on may be quite time consuming and frustrating. For children, learning how to put socks and shoes on, it may also be quite frustrating, overwhelming and confusing. It is very important to first understand and be mindful of this from both a parent and child’s perspective. The second most important thing is to understand the skills that are actually involved in this seamlessly easy task.
Putting on shoes and socks is a complicated task. Here are some of the skills and attributes that your child needs to have, to be able to complete this task;
- Bilateral coordination
- Pinch grip
- Tripod grasp
- Reaching
- Finger strength
- Grasping and releasing
- In hand-manipulation
- Strong core
- Strong postural muscles
- Good attention
- Visual vestibular integration
- Visual motor integration
- Self-monitoring
- Visuo-spatial perception
- Sequential and visual memory
- Task initiation
- Ability to create a plan
- Ability to come up with a strategy
- Motor coordination
- Motor planning
- And lots more!
What do these skills look like when tying shoes?
Fine motor
A tripod grasp is used to pick up the laces and finger strength is used to maintain the grip, while bilateral coordination is the ability to hold and coordinate the laces in each hand. Midline crossing is when we need to cross our hands to the other side of our body and in-hand manipulation is used when tying knots in the laces.
Visual perceptual skills
Children need to have many visual perceptual skills to tie their laces. They need figure ground skills which is the ability to see their laces when placed up against their shoe and sequential and visual memory, which is the ability to visually remember the steps involved and how to complete them.
Executive functioning
When tying laces, self-monitoring is necessary, for example, if a child accidentally drops a lace or makes a mistake, they would then be able to notice this and use the skill of task initiation to fix the problem.
Sensory Integration
Our vestibular system controls our balance which is needed to reach down to our feet, while our tactile system allows us to sense touch, and feel our sock is on our foot correctly.
Visual motor integration becomes necessary when a child watches someone teach them how to tie their laces, however, is then unable to use accurate motor movements to copy what they have seen.
So, what could possibly be going wrong? Potentially a lot, or maybe just one small aspect of the above list.
For example, without a strong core or postural muscles, a child will not be able to sit appropriately to reach their feet and pull their socks over.
Without the ability to motor plan or motor coordinate, a child may be trying to put on a shoe when their leg is completely out straight, instead of being bent a little at the knee.
If a child’s vestibular system is not integrated accurately with their visual system, they will become very dizzy or off balance when looking down at their sock then back up to find their shoe.
As you can see, there are many skills involved in what most people would deem to be an ‘easy’ task. If your child is struggling with this, that is fair enough! Keep persisting and be patient.
If you are concerned about your child regarding the above skills and it’s impacting their daily activities, please reach out to us at hello@occupationaltherapy.com.au or call us on 9913 3823.