Learning to tie their own shoes is a childhood milestone that kids normally learn to do by kindergarten. Not so with many special needs kids. It may be an issue of delayed motor skills, visual perception deficits, processing delays, or a physical disability that keeps them from achieving this.

When my autistic son’s occupational therapist began working with him on tying shoes, he couldn’t even comprehend the concept and it frustrated him beyond belief. And I thought she was crazy for even trying. As it turns out, there’s a reason she’s the therapist and I’m not.

It was as if God said to me, “See how he thinks? See how life seems to him?”

She then introduced a shoe with two different colored laces, and watching the comprehension unfold on my son’s face as she showed him the process again was amazing. Now that he could distinguish them, he could visually process where the laces were supposed to go.

It was a light-bulb moment for me, as well. How much else in his mind seems all jumbled and smashed together because he can’t distinguish the different parts? It was as if God said to me, “See how he thinks? See how life seems to him?” I realized that we need unravel things for him and make them more easy to comprehend on so many other levels.

The shoe-tying technique that our therapist taught us was a great one, and I’d like to pass it on.

Buy two sets of shoelaces of different colors. Cut them down to make each color half as long as the shoelace needs to be. Tie the opposite colors together making two shoelaces of equally different colors.

Lace the shoe normally with the newly tied-together shoelace.

The child can then easily see the difference between the laces while learning to tie them, making it easier to visualize the process.

Success with less frustration!

What techniques and tricks have you used to help your special needs child learn to tie his shoes? Please share your tips!