dragonlady wrote:
In article ,
Scott wrote:


What's the age record for not being able to tie shoelaces?
I'm just wondering if DS is going to set it

It's really interesting to watch -- DD had a friend who
*had* to be able to tie her shoes, and she accomplished
it at age 2. DS could not care less about this skill.
So his shoes are all slip-ons, except for his new soccer
shoes (size 5-1/2 already at age 9!)

Maybe this is a good lesson for a rainy afternoon -- I'll
sit him down and we'll learn to tie knots!


Scott DD 11 and DS 9



This is a skill that has to be directly taught, not something kids
figure out on their own. At least, I've never heard of a kid figuring
it out on their own.

So if he can't do it at 9, in the absence of some evidence that he has
some sort of physical or mental problem, it's most likely that he just
hasn't been taught, doesn't care, and has not had to learn for his own
survival.

Oh, a large part of it is parental laziness , and that
he doesn't care. DS is very much an I-don't-try-new-things-
unless-pushed kind of kid, and this isn't something we've
pushed.


Now that he has one pair of shoes that ties, I'd say, yes, it's time to
just sit him down and teach him to tie his own shoes. It's unlikely to
take long. If you turn it into an opportunity to learn other knots as
well, it might be fun. I couldn't do that without a book (I just don't
know very many knots) but it might be fun to get a book on knots, and
sit down with him and the book and fugure out together how to tie all
kinds of knots.

I'm trying to think of the knots I remember from Boy
Scouts. A square knot, two half-hitches, and a bowline
are the extent of my repertoire. And a hangman's noose.
I could easily see DS getting into knot-tying, so I
think when we finally do carve out some time to get him
to learn this, it'll be easy enough.

scott DD 11 and DS 9