Few things frustrate little ones as much as trying to do something they're not ready for yet… while the adult world asks them to hurry.
🤔 Picture a 4-year-old sitting in the hallway, backpack on, bare feet and brow furrowed in concentration. In front of them, a pair of laces that won't cooperate. That slip away. That get tangled. And an adult voice in the distance with the same line every morning: "Come on, we're leaving, put your shoes on!"
For decades, the design of children's shoes has followed an adult-centred logic: made by adults, with adult expectations, for bodies and brains that are not yet adult. And while children grow, the market keeps offering shoes made to adult taste, which demand skills that are still developing.
Would you like to know why it's better to make putting shoes on easier up to a certain age? Read on, because behind that choice lies a different way of supporting their autonomy… starting from what they can actually do.
📑 In this article
- Have you ever thought about the skills a child needs to tie their laces?
- That's why we don't offer tie-up laces in kids' shoes until size 38
- "But aren't we taking away their chance to learn?"
- "Build your Feroz shoes": an activity to play and practise without pressure
- And what about… "I want grown-up shoes"?
- In short
Have you ever thought about the skills a child needs to tie their laces?
Tying laces brings together several neurological and motor functions, which don't all develop at the same time:
- 🧠 Cognitive and sequencing development: remembering and following several steps in order (cross, pull tight, make the loop, wrap around, pull through…).
- ✋ Bimanual coordination: both hands have to work together, but making different movements.
- 🧩 Fine motor skills: precise finger control is needed to hold, tighten and handle the lace.
- 👁️ Hand-eye coordination: watching what you're doing and guiding your hands accordingly.
According to studies on child development, these skills usually mature together between the ages of 5 and 7, although there can be a lot of variation. Some little ones manage it earlier, others later… and it's all perfectly normal.
🔑 What matters is not age, but being able to notice when your little one has the skills they need to do it.
That's why we don't offer tie-up laces in kids' shoes until size 38
It's no coincidence: it's a decision that comes from observing a lot, listening even more and reflecting calmly.
After seeing how much frustration a task like tying laces can cause little ones when they're not ready yet, we asked ourselves: how can we encourage their autonomy without demanding a skill they are still developing?
The answer was clear: give them a system that lets them put their shoes on by themselves, without help, without getting cross and without feeling incapable.
👉 That's why we use hook-and-loop fastenings and elastic laces up to size 38. Because if we really want children to be independent, it's better to give them actions they can do on their own, and save the more complex learning for calmer moments, without the pressure of having to dash off to school.
When an everyday action becomes too demanding, the result isn't learning, but constant dependence on adults, a loss of self-confidence or a frustration that builds up every morning. And autonomy isn't built from there.
🧠 "But aren't we taking away their chance to learn?"
Quite the opposite! Tying your laces is a useful, fun and symbolic skill. Many children feel proud when they manage it on their own. But that moment should arrive the way real achievements do: with eagerness, curiosity and play.
When learning comes from wanting to, there's no need to remind them, force them or repeat it a hundred times. And to support that learning without pressure, we've prepared something very special…
🎉 "Build your Feroz shoes": an activity to play and practise without pressure
We've created a cut-out so little ones can build their own Feroz shoe out of card, decorate it however they like and use a real lace to practise their knots.
Download the cut-out here 👉.
🖍️ What do you need?
- Printable card (the thicker, the better 💪).
- A pair of scissors.
- A hole punch or awl to make the lace holes.
- Any lace you have at home.
And lots of enthusiasm for exploring! 🧠👐
No rush. No pressure. Just play, discovery and fun. Ideal to offer from age 4 or 5, when fingers are starting to become more skilful, but without expecting them to do it perfectly or "well enough to go out".
🦊 And if you come to Ferozland… you can ask us for it there too! We have the activity die-cut and ready to assemble, with everything you need to get stuck in. We don't want anyone to miss out on their cardboard Feroz! 💛
👟 And what about… "I want grown-up shoes"?
There comes a stage when little ones look up to Mum and Dad with admiration and are absolutely sure: "I want to be grown-up too!"
They're fascinated by watching laces being tied and tightened, turning into a gesture that seems to say: "I can do it by myself now". And of course, they want those grown-up shoes too.
And although it's lovely that they want to be like the people they admire ❤️, it's important to meet that wish with a realistic view of what they actually need. Because if we stop for a moment to look at what their days are like, we'll see that they run, climb, take their shoes off in the car, on the sofa, in the park… and put them back on in seconds. They live in constant motion, with changes of pace, interruptions and a lot of autonomy at stake. And at that supersonic pace, laces that come undone several times a day interrupt their play, exploration and fun.
That's why, even if they want to be like the grown-ups, until the age of 8 or 10 it's still more practical (and advisable) to use hook-and-loop fastenings or elastic laces day to day. Not because they can't learn, but because in their real lives there are more important things than tying and untying a bow fifteen times ⏱️.
That said… we know that children's curiosity is unstoppable. And if, after you've explained it, they still want to wear "grown-up" laces… the best thing is to let them try 🧪. Give them the chance to experiment for themselves. Because usually, after a couple of days of laces coming loose all the time, interrupted races and impossible knots… they realise on their own that elastic laces are way cooler 😄.
The day they can tie a bow and keep it tied… will come. But in the meantime, let's not let childhood slip away between knots 🧒💨.
In short
✅ Tying laces takes more than intention: it needs neurological development, coordination and emotional maturity.
✅ There's no exact age. There's a right moment.
✅ Real autonomy is built from what they can do on their own, not from what they struggle with every day.
✅ Pushing too early only leads to dependence or frustration.
✅ Making shoes easy to put on gives them tools to feel capable; it doesn't stop them learning.
✨ Because growing up with confidence isn't about doing everything alone, but about feeling that what I can do… I do.
