Learning to put on socks is a great skill to teach.

It correlates with learning to dress independently.

By the age of 5, your child should be able to dress himself.

Putting on socks is part of that journey!

Ready to see your child put on socks as independently as possible?

Let’s get started!

Step-by-Step Instructions for Putting on Socks

*Make certain to check with your child’s doctor and/or your child’s care team prior to trying any of these steps.

Follow the instructions below to help your child learn how to put socks on.

When you come to a step that you find that your child cannot do yet, stop and teach it.

There are ideas and suggestions for each teaching step.

Remember, teaching daily living skills can be a challenge, especially for children who have a disability.

Hang in there, have patients and don’t give up!

You are doing a wonderful service simply by teaching your child to put socks on his feet!

1. Open sock drawer

Can your child open the sock drawer?

If not, see what the barrier is to this.

Does your child have poor fine motor abilities?

Does the sock drawer seem to stick, making it hard to open?

Is the drawer up too high for your child to reach?

Take steps to minimize the barrier to this.

Perhaps you need to move the socks to a different drawer.

Or maybe you can simply pile all of the socks into a basket within easy reach.

Whatever you do, make certain access to the socks is as easy as possible for your child.

2. Take out a pair of socks

As with step one, easy access is important here.

Can your child simply retrieve the socks once the drawer is open?

Or once the child walks to the basket of socks?

3. Close sock drawer

Just as with opening the sock drawer, you want to teach your child to close it.

We don’t want anyone running into an open drawer and getting hurt!

4. Sit down

Some of us fancy folks can put our socks on standing up.

Good for us!

But for most, it is easier to sit down.

It may be easier for your child to sit down to put on their socks, too!

Sounds simple enough, but some children may not know to sit down.

You may have to teach this step.

Be sure to have a comfortable chair, rug, or other space for your child to sit.

You want the seat to place them in an ideal position to be able to put on their socks easily.

5. Unroll socks (if they are balled up)

Maybe you are like me and you ball up the socks when folding the laundry.

If so, you will have to teach your child to unroll them!

You could tell your child that the socks are curled up sleeping.

And now you have to wake them up by unrolling them!

6. Take one sock

After the socks have been unrolled, what’s next?

Taking one sock in hand, of course!

Can your child take just one sock?

7. Open the cuff of it with both hands

Now we get to the tough stuff!

Actually putting on the socks!

This can be a tough step.

Opening the cuff of the sock in order to put it on!

See if your child can open the cuff with both hands.

This may be a step that you need to stop and teach, so don’t fret!

Try to look for reasons why your child may be having trouble.

Then try to resolve them so that it is easier for your child.

Take your time!

Have patience!

8. Bend forward to have the cuff of the sock meet the toes of the foot

Again, another tough step!

Make certain that your child is comfortably positioned when doing this.

Some children with balance issues may fall sideways when trying to do this.

So take note!

Safety first!

For this step, your child has to hold the cuff open, as well as lean forward to get the sock to mee the toes.

Hard stuff!

Maybe you can practice some exercises throughout the day where your child leans forward and touches their foot!

Or you can have your child practice leaning forward and putting stickers on his toes as a fun way to practice this movement!

Again, be thoughtful and creative here in helping to teach this step.

9. Place toes into the sock

Once your child can lean forward and have the sock and the toes meet, we take on the next step…

Actually putting the toes into the sock!

This can be a challenging step, as well.

(Starting to think about how we take these little steps for granted, eh?)

Some children have trouble getting all of their toes in.

It is a good idea to remind your child to keep the cuff as wide open as possible.

This way, he has a better chance of getting all of those cute little toes into the sock opening!

It helps if your child can rest the heel of his foot on the floor instead of holding his foot up in the air.

You may simply need to teach resting the heel of his foot on the floor first.

Once again, keep an open mind here and have patience!

10. Pull the sock towards self with both hands to get it over the toes

Now that all your child’s sweet little toes are in the sock, can he start pulling the sock up towards himself to cover the foot?

Your child does not have to pull the sock on all the way!

For this step, you just want to see if your child can start pulling it.

11. Continue to pull the sock towards self with both hands to get it over the midfoot

Yes, we’re taking it slow and steady here!

Now we just want to see if your child can pull the sock up just half-way.

Pulling a sock on over the foot can be just as tricky as some of the previous steps!

You can practice having your child put socks on a favorite doll or help you when you put on your own!

12. Continue to pull the sock towards self with both hands to get it over the heel

I know that this seems redundant, but we gotta take it slow!

Now that your child can pull the sock on up over the toes and the midfoot, let’s get it over that heel!

Getting it up over the heel can also be a tricky area!

Take note of the challenges that your child is having with this and look for ways to make it easier.

Hang in there!

We’re on the right road!

It just might take some time!

13. Adjust sock if it gets stuck at the heel

This part happens quite often, especially to an early learner!

When the sock gets stuck at the heel, your child will need to learn how to get it unstuck.

That way, he can finish pulling the sock up all the way.

You may need to teach your child how to get out of this sticky situation.

It may help if your child has socks that are slightly larger.

This way, the extra material will give some wiggle room when learning to adjust the sock.

14. Pull the sock towards self with both hands up the remainder of the way

Keep going!

Your child is almost there!

15. Adjust sock accordingly

Horray!

Your child has made it to the finish line – with one sock at least!

Take this time to teach your child how to adjust the sock, if need be.

You want your child to be comfortable.

Making sure the sock is on correctly is a great way to do that.

17. Repeat the same steps with the remaining sock

Ok!

Time for sock #2!

Chances are good, now that your child can put on sock #1!

Go back to the beginning of these steps and see if your child can do the same with the last sock!

You Did It!

Great!

You studied each step of putting on socks in depth with your child!

Now you should know which areas your child is successful with…

And which areas your child needs help with.

Remember that each child learns differently.

You may need to make some adjustments to the routine.

You may also need to be a little more creative when trying to teach certain steps.

Either way, you should now have a better picture of what it takes to learn to put on socks.

And now that you know – you can help your child become a successful dresser!