How can my Child Get Dressed Independently?

Children have a beautiful confidence within themselves that us adults do not have as much. When children have the opportunity to pick out their own outfits, they always choose their favorite articles of clothing even if they don't match and wear it proudly. Let's help encourage their confidence and grow their independence by building their own child size closet.

Child Size Closet Set - Up

Build a child size closet to place in your child's bedroom, here are some places to buy children's closets. It is important to remember your child's height while looking or building the closet, becuase you want your child to be able to reach their clothes without your help. While you are creating the closet keep in mind where each article of clothing will go. It's ideal if all articles of clothing are in the same spot because it not only helps their sequence of order (where each clothing item is and putting on clothes order), but also helps build their concentration. Shirts, sweaters, jackets, and pants should all be hung up with child size hangers (insert link). Underwear, socks and shorts can be folded in baskets and shoes can go on the bottom layer.

Once the closet is complete it's the fun part, the clothes! Only allow three to seven top and bottom choices at a time. Making the closet with only a limmited amount of clothing at time allows the child to have a few choices and the freedom to choose what they would like to wear. Allowing your child to choose their own clothes gives them a sense of independence, confidence within themselves and get to show their personality. When ever your family does laundry day is a perfect time to change out clothes from the bigger cloest to the child size closet. Having a rotation, when possible, truly helps with cutting down your laundry time.

How to teach self dressing

Remeber to always talk out your steps to help build language. Think about the natural order you dress in and show the order to your child. You must follow through and repeat this multiple times to help build their sense of order (try your best to not change it). Children do best in routines and patterns.

When it comes to underwear and pants teach them sitting down, both of you. Show and say which way is the front, how to roll pants to easily put legs through, how to pull up the pants all the way by standing. Remember to state your actions as you're helping guide your child's clothes on. For the shirt, show the three holes of the shirt and where the head goes and where the arms go. Assist your child by placing your hands over their's to show the movement. By repeating these steps, your child will slowly delevop their motor skills and grip strength. The three most difficult self dress skills are: putting a jacket/coat on, button/zipper and putting on/taking off shoes.

How to Teach Putting a Jacket/Coat On

My favorite way to demonstate how to put a coat on is showing the "Montessoir Flip" trick. Start by placing the child's jacket flat on the floor where the arms are out by the side, open and can clearly see the two arm holes. Have your child stand at the nape of the neck of the jacket. Tell your child to bend over and to place their two hands in the arm holes securley. Once their hands are placed in the arm holes, help guide them to stand up while also pushing their arms further into the arm holes and flipping the jacket over their head. At the beginning, you will have to demonstrate, guide and remind your child of the steps until it becomes easier for them as they gain their strength and motor skills.

How to Teach Buttoning and Zipping Clothes

Repetition is very important in children because it allows the child to practice to their own self mastery. In a Montessori classroom Dressing Frames are provided for the children to practice their fine motor skills of self dressing, however at home it is not nessessary to buy those. At home, take your child's jacket that has buttons, zippers or even snap button and place it on a hanger flat on the floor or table. Sit by your child slowly show them how to unbutton/unzip/unsnap the jacket. Before your child tries, you must show them how to rebutton/zip/snap back to closure. It's best to show your child three times all the way through before allowing them to try. This is because children learn best by observing first and then trying on their own. For the parents, you must demonstrate slowly, if you think you're going slow, go even slower to show your hand placement and movement. You want to make sure your child is seeing every step clearly. When it is your child's turn, watch what they do and guide them as needed. Allow your child to practice every day to gain fine motor skills and hand strength which will eventually lead to independence.

How to Teach Putting on/Taking off Shoes

Most important rule to keep in mind about shoes, do not buy shoes with laces until the child knows how to tie their own shoes. You want to build confidence within your child, so if you are always putting shoes on them with laces, they're always going to be asking for help rather than being independent. Start with slip on shoes or velcro shoes to build confidence and independence.

As toddlers and young children do not know the difference between left and right, you can place stickers on the shoes to show left and right. Here are some examples.....

When teaching how to put on and take off shoes, always start with the left foot. This is because, many things we do as humans always starts from left to right (reading, writing, cleaning), it comes naturally to most to always start on the left. Guide your hands over your child's hand to show placement and movement of putting on and taking off the shoes. Feel free to use language as your guiding the movement of the actions.

Hanging Up and Folding Clothes