When should I start putting shoes on my child?

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The question of when to put shoes on your child for the first time will come up sooner or later for every parent.
The general rule is that learning to walk should always be done barefoot because this is the best and most unadulterated way to learn and develop motor and sensor skills. If it's cold, you can of course wear stockings.
As a rule, first walkers are not something healthy children need.
You can also find more on this topic at: When do children start running?

When should I start putting shoes on my child?

Buying the first shoes only makes sense from the point at which the child starts moving outside.
Learning to walk should first be done barefoot.

When children run outside for the first time certainly differs from child to child, especially because the first steps come at very different times. In any case, before walking together for the first time in nature, you should buy shoes to protect children's feet from dirt, cold, moisture and bumps.

The first shoe purchase should be done carefully and carefully, as the first shoes that do not fit can mean a negative association with the shoes for the child. The statement that children should put on shoes as early as possible because they learn to walk better this way or because their feet are otherwise too wide is wrong and outdated.

Why should I put shoes on my child?

Above all, shoes are there to protect your feet!
It is not for nothing that even adults say that walking barefoot as often as possible is good for the foot. And not only because of the sweat build-up but also to train the arch of the foot, which is extremely important for running.

With children, this rule should be heeded all the more: walk barefoot as long and as often as possible.
But at the latest when you go outside with the little one, your feet need protection against external influences. Nevertheless, it is still true that walking barefoot should be preferred to walking in shoes as often as possible if external circumstances permit.
This applies to toddlers as well as children, adolescents and adults.

What can I do if my child does not want to put on shoes?

There are numerous reasons why a child may not want to put on or wear the shoes.
One of the most common causes is probably that the shoe does not fit in size, i.e. is too small or too big. That is why children's feet should be measured carefully and in peace, especially when fitting their first shoes, in a specialist shop.

Parents should also learn to measure so that they don't have to go to the shop to measure each additional shoe. If the size is the right one, but the child still does not like to wear the shoe, it may also be that the shoe is too tight or pinches somewhere.
Every child's foot shape is different and therefore not every shoe fits every child equally well. In case of doubt, you should seek advice from an experienced salesperson about the existing shoe shapes and other possible alternatives.
Another possibility that the child does not want to wear the shoe can also be that the shoe is too tight or hard and not flexible enough. Here, too, it can help to try out different shoe models, the selection of children's shoes is almost endless these days.

If all of the above-mentioned reasons can be ruled out as the cause of the child's reluctance to wear shoes, the most likely cause is that the child is simply still very unfamiliar with the shoe at the beginning. Especially when children wear their very first shoe, it can be a strange and cramped feeling for the little ones at first. The child should then be slowly but surely introduced to wearing the shoes.
The shoes and putting them on can be playfully incorporated into other activities that are fun for the child so that the little one develops a positive association with the shoes. If the child is not yet walking around outside, you can try to get them used to shoes that are not really sturdy street shoes, but rather light shoes, for example made of soft leather. This can possibly take away the child's initial fear of contact with shoes.