[twitter]This post is sponsored by GEOX, the leading brand in Canadian uniform footwear for kids.
We live in a velcro / slip on world.
Zacharie is nearly 7 1/2 and still doesn’t know how to tie laces. When he got a pair of skate shoes for his skateboard this summer, we tied them up once, and they’ve turned in to slip ons.
That’s how it goes with kids these days.
As we get ready for back to school, we can’t rely on teachers to help the boys mess with the laces of each kid in the class, so we’re in a velcro / slip on world again. Yes, the boys do need to learn, but as with bike riding, reading, and all of the other father/son lessons I’m supposed to teach my kids, I have a tendency to find the easy way out and let things slide. So we have slip ons and velcro.
Here are 3 (supposedly) easy ways to teach kids how to tie laces. As with the potty training, only serious commitment to teach (and be taught) can make this happen.
The Circle Method
Fancy Pinkies and Lobster Claws
Bunny Ear Method
If you get your kids lacing things up, you can choose the “Oxford” option on your back to school shopping list when it comes to finding formal shoes. We’ve gone for loafers and velcro for the boys as they head back to private school this year.
While sending the boys to a private school will stretch our budget this year, it does make back-to-school shopping easy. White polo shirts, red ties, and blue pants are all bought from the school’s uniform shoppe.
All we need to really worry about are shoes (and teaching them how to tie them). For uniforms we need 3 pairs of shoes. One for to and from, one for inside the school, and then the formal shoes. Whenever they have assemblies, head out on a field trip, or come back from a break, the kids all wear the formal uniform.
The black shoes seems to be the hardest to find for the boys (because laces).Head to a GEOX store, however, and you can get your back-to-school school shoe shopping sorted easily with slip on, velcro, and lace up options for the fast learners with alpha parents.
GEOX is the leading brand in Canadian uniform footwear for kids. Lots of choices, lots of styles, and a comfortable shoe that the kids will love.
Buying GEOX for the boys was an easy decision for us. The shoes are sturdy, comfortable, waterproof, and breathable.
GEOX has a patent for their shoes. They perforated the rubber sole of the shoe and placed in its interior a special membrane with a microporous structure. This feature is exclusive to GEOX shoes, designed to let feet breathe without allowing water to enter. As we head into the wetter, colder months of winter, this type of sole is something that kids need.
Charlie and Zacharie can give us feedback as to whether or not shoes fit, it’s tougher to tell with toddlers and pre-schoolers. GEOX shoes have a removable sole with blue lines on the heel and toe to help you know when your kids’ shoes are too small and they need to move to a new size. The blue lines should gently hug the tops of their toes. If they squeak into the blue, the shoes are too small, too far away, and the shoes are too big.
We chose The Jr W Snake Mocassino shoes for Charlie.
They’re super comfy, sporty, and I love how the sole wraps around the heel for some added protection from the inevitable scuffing that little boys do when they walk.
Oh, and they’re velcro. 🙂 The boys will learn to tie their shoes eventually, just not in time for back-to-school.
I received a pair of GEOX shoes to facilitate this product review.