Happy Feet, Happy Summer: How to Find the Best Shoes for Your Child's Development
School is out and the weather has turned warm - which means it is time to free the feet!
With so many choices, how do you know which shoes will be best for your child? Read on for recommendations from an Aspire physical therapist.
Shoes are important as they affect how our feet interact with the ground below as well as influencing our posture. New to wearing high heels? You will likely have sore back muscles from the change in posture. Have you tried hiking on a rocky trail with flip flops? You may have had sore feet that lingered into the next day.
What your child needs in a shoe will depend on their current skills, activities, and where they are in their physical development. If your child is currently receiving physical therapy, ask your therapist for what to look for in your child’s next pair of shoes!
If you don’t have a therapist on your child’s care team there are a few things to look for in a good sandal based on your child’s age and abilities below.
Happy shopping and happy summer!!
Babies and New Walkers
Stick to barefoot or “crib shoes.” These shoes should be so flexible that they can easily be crumpled up into the palm of your hand. Your child is still developing and mastering their standing balance, thus it is important they can feel the ground with their feet in order to respond appropriately. Secondly, the muscles that make up the arches in their feet are still developing. It is important that these muscles have an opportunity to strengthen versus being able to rely on the rigidity of a shoe.
Robeez: Baby Boy, Baby Boy, Baby Girl, Baby Girl
Toddler and Little Kid Shoes
Once your child begins to look steady on their feet, it is time to look for shoes to mainly use outside. Indoor, barefoot continues to be the best choice as it allows the child’s natural arches and muscles in their feet to develop. Toddler shoes should have flat heels and be flexible. You should be able to bend the shoe in half and twist the shoe. The goal of the shoe is to protect their foot, but still allow the foot to be flexible! Having a sturdy back on the shoe is critical to ensure their heel bone is supported which is critical for bone development and overall balance. Shoes for this age group should continue to be flexible and have flat heels. You should be able to bend the shoe in half and twist the shoe easily, as if you were wringing out water out of a washcloth.
Skidders: Baby Boy, Baby Girl If your child still fits into Skidders feel free to use them for this stage of development as well! They hold up quite well to outdoor play and even walking on pavement.
Plae: (available at Plae.co) Styles: Sam 2.0, Mimo, and Chloe are all great for summer
Gubarun: Mesh Shoes
Keens: Seacamp Sandal
Livie and Luca: Girls Formal Sandals
Wobbly Waddlers: First Step Sandals, Sandals
Merrell: Kids Hydro junior Sport Sandal
PediPed: Sahara Flat
Big Kid Sized Shoes
School aged kids can make shoe-shopping trickier for the simple reason they typically have an opinion about what they are wearing! They want to be “cool and fashionable.” The most important thing I can stress for kids this age is that the shoes fit. Flip flops and shoes similar to Crocs are easy to slip on, but they are not best for developing feet. Look for shoes and sandals that have a secure back. Feet fatigue quicker without a back on the shoe as the toes have to constantly grip your shoes to keep them on. In addition to overworking tiny muscles in your feet, shoes without backs typically do not lend to a while aligned rear foot. At this age and into adulthood, it is important to have supportive shoes that keep your foot in good alignment. Shoes with good support will help your child continue to have a strong arch, and reduce their risk of pain and dysfunction later in life- to include plantar fasciitis and achilles tendonitis. All shoes should allow children’s toes to spread and should not have an elevated heel (this is called a “zero drop” in the shoe world.) Check out some favorite sandals below:
Keens: Seacamp Sandal
Merrell: Kids Hydro junior Sport Sandal
Plae: (available at Plae.co) Styles: Sam 2.0, Mimo, and Chloe are all great for summer
Having a hard time getting your older child to agree to solid back sandals?
Late elementary school children’s feet may be ready to wear shoes without a solid back. Have your child pick out a sandal with a back that they like. Take a photo of their foot by lining up your phone directly on the floor behind their foot. Take a look at the position of their foot in the photo with them. While wearing the desired shoe, their achilles tendon (that strong tissue on the back of your ankle), should go straight up from the middle of their heel bone. If you notice a bend in the tendon, then the heel is not being supported enough which could lead to development challenges or injuries. Ultimately, a different shoe should be tested. If you aren’t sure, our physical therapists would be happy to help!
Adaptive Footwear
Does your child wear KAFOs, AFOs, SMOS, UCBLs? Sometimes finding a shoe that will fit your child’s orthotic can be tricky and the rules and recommendations are a little different. Your child will be getting good arch support from their orthotic, so a shoe’s arch support is less important. Your child likely needs a light weight shoe in order to conserve their energy when walking. Look for shoes that come in a size ‘wide’ and remember to remove the manufacturer’s cushion insert to give your child’s orthotic a bit more room. A higher profile shoe, such as a high top, will help ensure your child’s heel stays inside the shoe while using their foot orthosis. Finding sandals to fit orthotics can be tricky.
Billy Sandals: Toddler sandals, Little Kid/Big Kid Sandals
Plae: (available at Plae.co) Styles: Sam 2.0 and order extra long velcro tabs
You may also have success using non adaptive sandals with back such as:
Keens: Seacamp Sandal
Merrell: Kids Hydro junior Sport Sandal
If your child has to wear orthotics then it might not be worth the effort or investment in sandals since they will still need to wear socks and their orthotics. That’s ok! There are still some pretty awesome adaptive gym shoes on the market- a nice change from a decade ago! Here are some of my favorites:
Billy Footwear: High Tops, Breathable High Tops, Classic High Top, Sneaker, Low Sneaker, Jogger, Toddler High Top, Sport Inclusion
See Kai Run: Dean Adapt (toddler/little kid)
New Balance: 574
Plae- (available at Plae.co) order with extra long straps
Converse: Chuck Taylor All Star Easy Slip High Top Sneaker (the entire heel flips down)
Nike: FlyEase, Pegasus FlyEase Mens (adult size), Pegasus FlyEase Womens (adult Size), Nike Go FlyEase (adult size)
Dr. Angela Kloiber, DPT, is a licensed physical therapist specializing in pediatrics at Aspire
