How to Teach a Child with Autism to Tie Their Shoes

Autism in the US has increased in our population by 30% over the last two years. In honor of Autism awareness month we want to help parents by showing them how to teach a child with autism to tie their shoes.

One of the most common challenges a child with autism faces is the frustration and struggle that happens when they can’t tie their own shoelaces every day. For mom and dad, this often means having to do it for them, or resorting to shoes without laces for daily wear. 

Across the spectrum, children with autism in the US have to find easier methods of tying their shoelaces, for a number of reasons. Some have accompanying disorders that make it difficult, others may battle with the pincer grip required to do things like button shirts and tie laces. So this post is going to detail the easiest ways for your child to tie their shoelaces! There are a few methods here to try out, but we’re confident you’ll find one that works!

#1: The Unstoppable Mother Blogger Method

One in every 42 boys and 1 in every 189 girls are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder – did you know that? It was still a surprise though, when blogger Kirsten Johnson from The Unstoppable Mother blog shared a live video on Facebook teaching people a super-simple shoelace tying method. The video went viral with over 8 million views, with parents of children with autism in the US particularly grateful for the tutorial. Kirsten received hundreds of thank-you letters and positive comments about the tutorial, which you can see above. Instead of the old ‘bunny ear’ method which often doesn’t work for children with Autism, this method uses two easy knots to create the bow. Just watch the tutorial to see her in action.

#2: The Magic Finger Method

A bit more complicated than the very easy unstoppable mother method, is the magic finger method. Many kids with autism in the US can manage more complex shoelace tying methods because they don’t have any trouble learning – the real issue lies with motivation.

Sometimes a child with autism won’t want to tie their shoelaces because they don’t see any point doing it, or they just don’t want to do it at the time. The Magic Finger method can be useful because it only takes 2 seconds to execute, and is known as the world’s fastest shoelace knot. Creator Ian Fieggen says that all you need to do is tie a left over right starting knot, then master the technique shown in this video here.

#3: The U-Lace No Tie Method

Autism in the US is on the rise, which means that more and more parents are looking for long term solutions for their kids. If a child really struggles to tie their shoelaces, you may want to explore eliminating the hassle of having to do it altogether. We’ve heard from a lot of parents who are hesitant to make their kids wear laceless shoes every day, or shoes that have those hard lace locks and plastic pieces that make the child stand out as different. With the U-Lace No Tie Method, all you need are a few packs of our patented no-tie shoelaces and you have yourself laces that look like authentic sneaker laces, but that convert your child’s shoes into slip-ons.

With the U-Lace No Tie Method, all you need are a few packs of our patented no-tie shoelaces and you have yourself laces that look like authentic sneaker laces, but that convert your child’s shoes into slip-ons for easy wear. Best of all, you can thread them in a variety of amazing styles for your child, so that they are still wearing the latest lace patterns, without any of the hard work involved! Our customers have sent us hundreds of personal messages saying how U-Laces make the perfect sneaker laces for children with autism and have made such a difference in their kids’ lives. It’s a great way for your autistic child to blend in and stand out for the right reasons this time. We have so many colors to choose from that soon, every pair of your son or daughter’s sneakers will be rocking a unique U-Lace design.

No Tie Laces That Look Like The Real Thing

Parents of autistic kids understand how small changes can make such a big difference in the quality of life of their children. But no parent wants to sacrifice style for functionality because they know it creates a barrier between their child and other kids.

That’s why our U-Lace no-tie laces make great shoelaces for children with autism! And with autism in the US becoming so prevalent, we are delighted to support our special needs communities during autism awareness month and of course – all year round!

So our recommendations are:

• For autistic children that can tie laces but need a good reason – The Magic Finger Method
• For autistic children that want independence but struggle – The Unstoppable Mom Method
• For autistic children that really have trouble but want to learn how – Some no tie laces
• For autistic children that have serious trouble with laces – U-Lace no tie laces

We know how important teaching your child is, so that they can learn to function and be independent one day – but for kids with autism in the US that struggle the most, U-Laces are an excellent solution, so that you can skip over the difficulty each day and focus on what matters.

So that’s how to teach a child with autism to tie their shoes using 3 popular methods that work. If you found this post helpful, please share it and spread the love.

And leave us your U-Lace story below in the comments if we’ve helped you! Nothing makes us happier or helps us work harder than hearing how U-Laces have changed your life.