At what age were you when you first learned how to tie your shoelaces?

[Caspar]

I was really surprised when I found out there were people who learned how to tie their shoes at 3...I didn't learn until I was 8 or 9 and had classmates and teachers tie my shoes for me. It took a while for my motor skills to develop...

 

[King_Oni]

I've touched on this subject in a few other threads already. But I had a hard time understanding how it worked, thus I had velcro shoes until I was at least 10.

At some point my parents were so sick n tired of it they "forced" me to learn it. I learned a 3rd method (because the 2 methods I was being show, just didn't add up to me), and I've used that ever since. I even learned that method to an aspie friend of mine who didn't know how to do so until I showed him, and that was last year when he was 26.

 

[HelloDizzy]

I'm 20 and it's still not happening.

 

[IContainMultitudes]

I don't remember, but I think it was a bit later than average, maybe at about 12 or so. I remember that it took me a long time to get it right. I've pretty much switched to wearing velcro shoes now (one of the nice things about being an adult is not caring if anyone makes fun of me for wearing them), so it's not really a skill I use much anymore.

 

[Gomendosi]

I honestly can’t say when I learned, but I can say this:

I also went through the ubiquitous Velcro period and some of those type of shoes used to be quiet stylish, now they are seen mostly as functional footwear and not really made fashionable by any companies in Australia. I could of course just not be looking in the right places ; ]

When I first learned to tie my shoes I thought I was king of the world and then I found out their was a second way to do it, I had been taught the single loop “Round The Tree” method but there is also the double loop “Bunny Ears” method and I was so absorbed trying to learn this second method that I actually forgot the first and then couldn’t learn or re-learn either. I didn’t realize there was a third way.
This same thing happened with me with whistling, I learned that you put your lips together and blow, but shortly after my triumph of learning to whistle it was made clear that you could also whistle by sucking air in, this lead to the same result as above, I forgot both ways and got super frustrated! Imagine how angry I was when I discovered you could use your fingers to make a third whistle ; ]

I don’t know if this has any bearing on anything but, as a child I hated more than anything if my shoelaces became undone, therefore I developed the insane habit of having to tuck the tied shoelaces down the side of the shoe next to my sock, now they can’t go anywhere unless I walk a lot, and I do. So I am occasionally fussy about tucking them in again (when I remember), its just replacing one annoying thing with another is all? Undone or untucked?

Also… they have to be laced through the eyelets in the boot/ shoe a certain way… Grrrrr :beardM:

 

[cheetoe80]

I think 6 maybe 7, I know I wasn't doing it myself in kindergarden or 1st grade.

 

[Kelly]

I think I was about 9, I remember my aunt trying to teach me how but it made no sense. My husband says I tie laces in a weird way, but then I say that about him his way seems so complicated and just not right. My daughter is 6 and still has no idea, we tie any laced shoes loose enough so she can slip her feet in/out as she just can't understand how to do it.

 

[Flinty]

I had problems with the most-well-known technique forever. I learned a second technique around age 9 that was useful for about 3 years, then Velcro became more commonplace after that. Weirdly enough, after the Velcro era I haven't really had trouble since then. Well, except for the fact that my laces stretch in one direction several inches, eventually making tying impossible.

 

[Bay]

No Velcro when I was a kid, so it was either shoelaces or buckles. I hated buckles so I had no choice but to learn to tie my shoes. With two younger siblings, my mother did not have time to follow me around to keep my shoes on my feet. Actually, I much preferred barefeet anyway. Much better for tippy toes!

 

[earthsteward70]

I was five. My dad insisted. He taught me, too. He persisted until I learned. He threatened me that I couldn't go to school and I wasn't a big girl until I did it by myself. He also told the teacher to make me write right-handed. He told the teacher of his insistence that I write the 'proper' way even if she had to hit me. Incidentally, She was a wonderful teacher, who gently, and patiently got me to write with my right hand, and was proud of me that I was one of only 3 that could tie their shoes and help the others learn. My Aspie son learned to tie shoes at age 9 and happily writes left-handed as is natural for him.

 

[debym6]

My son just turned 9, he is almost there, but still has problems.

 

[Pusteblume]

I was 12, but I still have problems with it. It takes time to tie my shoelaces.

 

[smith2267]

I still tie mine kid style, and I'm 46.
I can do it the right way, but I have to stop and think about it. And I don't see any advantage.

I was five. My dad insisted. He taught me, too. He persisted until I learned. He threatened me that I couldn't go to school and I wasn't a big girl until I did it by myself. He also told the teacher to make me write right-handed. He told the teacher of his insistence that I write the 'proper' way even if she had to hit me. Incidentally, She was a wonderful teacher, who gently, and patiently got me to write with my right hand, and was proud of me that I was one of only 3 that could tie their shoes and help the others learn. My Aspie son learned to tie shoes at age 9 and happily writes left-handed as is natural for him.

She's a witch! may we burn her?? I'm joking of course. The myth that left handed people are evil goes way back. Sinister is the latin word for left.
I hope my little attempt at humor didn't offend you.
Words are one of my aspie obsessions.

 

[Needtobreathe]

I knew how to tie, but when it came to closing the loops, I was a failure. I learned in the 7th grade...

 

[dwc780]

I learned when I was nine or ten, always wore velcro before that. Apparently, or at least according to everyone who has ever watched me tie my shoes, I have a very odd way of doing it. Do the initial cross under, then make two loops and pass one under the other to tie it off. I can tie a tie immaculately though!

 

[tree]

I learned to tie my shoes from an older girl
when I was 10 years old. Before that I had
buckle shoes, then in 4th grade --loafers.
And finally some tie shoes that my mother
dyed pale blue for my piano recital.

 

[LiquoriceLemonade]

When I was young I had a really short attention span. It was only at age 12 that I actually cared enough to learn how to tie my shoelaces, with the help of my mum one morning. Before that I was wearing either velcro or slip-on.

It is an improvement, but there is only one way I can do it because my lack of interest tends to take away my need to learn other methods, so my shoelaces end up looking a tad scruffy and I'm usually needing to tuck parts into my shoe...

 

[SameStars]

I learned at 12, after a friend was really determined to teach me. Before that I had velcro shoes or boots with a zipper.

 

[Questella]

I discovered "Skater Shoes" and that was the end of that shoe tying nonsense.

 

[Nisk]

I discovered "Skater Shoes" and that was the end of that shoe tying nonsense.

Same here, although I also have flat feet so flat soles are more comfortable