• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Because dads don’t always think like moms™

  • Dad
    • Celebrities
    • Gay Dads
    • Sex
    • Single Dads
  • Pregnancy
    • Labor or Delivery
    • Pregnant Wife
  • Baby
    • Baby Naming
    • Feeding
    • Sleep
    • Toilet Training
  • Kids
  • Teens
  • Activities
    • Local
    • By Age
    • Movie Reviews
    • Celebrations
  • Toys
    • We Recommend
    • Toys
  • Coaching for Dads
  • Great Dad Talks Podcast
You are here: Home / Baby / No to shoes

No to shoes

April 20, 2007 by GreatDad Writers 1 Comment

Making your toddler, who is just learning to walk, wear shoes or any protective gear is no child’s play! Refusal to wear shoes has several possible reasons and is characterized by the following:



  • Conflict of Interests: Parents force their toddlers to wear shoes. Children at this age view this as unnecessary, and try to assert their own identity, by simply throwing the shoes away. What results is a power struggle between the parent and the baby.


  • Natural vs. unnatural: A child refusing to wear shoes is not abnormal. In fact what seems unnatural is the parent’s insistence that the child wear shoes. Nature protects children’s feet by providing them with padded soles and toes to retain their balance. Your baby has just started experiencing different surfaces such as grass, wooden floors, and your home carpet. It is expected that the child enjoys being barefoot.


  • Discomfort: Some shoes may be simply too small or too big for their feet. Some children may not like the idea of a foreign object on their body.

Of course, as a parent, it is important to ensure that your child’s feet are protected from snow, dirt, broken glass, and other sharp objects.


 


Here are some strategies that you can adopt to change your baby’s outlook towards shoes:



  • Be positive – Use praise and motivation to help your child view wearing shoes as a good thing to do. Shouting, yelling, and the use of force will make the baby associate shoes with negative feelings.


  • Make it fun – Make it fun for your child to wear shoes. Use music, dance, toys, or any favorite activity that your baby likes, while you slip the shoe on the child’s foot. Allow the baby to choose a favorite color or style. Reserve these “fun shoes” for special events such as a trip to the zoo.


  • Use the correct shoe – Frequently, parents buy shoes without realizing how uncomfortable they are for their kids. Buy the right fit. Check if the shoe is light enough so that the child feels close to the experience of being barefoot.


  • Barefoot is not a bad option – If nothing works, and if it is safe for the baby to do so, allow the child to remain barefoot.

Filed Under: Baby

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Pete says

    November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Kids seem to have better instincts than us grown-ups on many occasions. Letting kids go barefoot is the best advice I’ve heard in years, especially since these days modern society has such an adverse reaction to bare feet and tend to have a servere overdependancy on shoes. Dr. Lynn Staheli, who directed the orthopedics division at the Children’s Hospital in Seattle for 15 years, documented that children raised in parts of the world where shoes are rarely worn had better flexibility, mobility, and strength, which resulted in fewer foot-related problems and injuries. In the 1960 classic “Take Off Your Shoes and Walk,” chiropodist Simon Wikler notes that children who go barefoot regularly develop stronger, healthier, and more functional feet than children who are generally shod. (He notes that a “constantly shoe-wearing tenderfoot” is rarely able to comprehend the innate capability of the human foot.) In a quick 30 minute internet search I found over a dozen medical reports and studies showing the adverse affects shoes have on our bodies from as far back as the turn of the last century and countless news articles from reporters reffering to these and other medical findings supporting this notion. Why then do we insist on wearing shoes so much when being barefoot is so comfortable and healthy? I agree that there is a time and place for shoes but the choice to be barefoot should always be left to each individual.

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Great Dad Talks

Great Dad Talks
Great Dad Talks

Great Dad Talks is a series of conversations with experts on all aspects of the family adventure. With the perspective that “dads don’t always think like moms,” our mission is to support dad voices and our slightly different approaches to parenting. We’ll try to find solutions to every day challenges like getting kids off the couch and making STEM classes available for both boys and girls. But we’ll also tackle bigger issues when they come. The one main theme will be to support dads in the most important role of their lives that of being a great dad. Connect with us at greatdad.com and watch the video version of these podcasts at YouTube.com/greatdadnews

Spinning Out Family Stress with Michael Blair
byPaul Banas

Welcome to another episode of Great Dad Talks! This week, I sit down with life coach and former psychologist Michael Blair to explore modern tools for family harmony, emotional healing, and child development.

Michael shares the transformative power of his unique “spin” method—a tool rooted in Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP)—that helps kids, parents, and even whole families quickly change negative emotional patterns in just minutes. Listen in as Michael walks Paul through an anxiety-busting spin live, explains why dads’ involvement is critical to healthy families, and shares actionable tips on self-forgiveness and resilience.

Check out Michael’s website at blaircounselingandcoaching.com

Visit these links and embark on the path to becoming the best parent you can be:

– GreatDad.com/coaching 

– GreatDad.com/pq 

– Gratitude course: bit.ly/3NMLDNC

50% off for podcast listeners with code PODCAST50

Spinning Out Family Stress with Michael Blair
Spinning Out Family Stress with Michael Blair
July 15, 2025
Paul Banas
Decoding Dad’s Mental Load with Zach Watson
July 8, 2025
Paul Banas
152. Building Men’s Character and Legacy with Jim Tracy
July 1, 2025
Paul Banas
151. The Power of Playful Parenting with Dr. Larry Cohen
June 24, 2025
Paul Banas
150. The Power of Humor in Parenting with Gavin Bellour
June 17, 2025
Paul Banas
149. Winning College Applications with Hamada Zahawi
June 10, 2025
Paul Banas
148. Healing Generational Trauma with Dr. Sasha Reiisi
June 3, 2025
Paul Banas
147. Discovering Dad’s Purpose with Adam Landrum
May 27, 2025
Paul Banas
146. Balancing Business and Family with Dr. Travis Parry
May 20, 2025
Paul Banas
145. Understanding Children’s Emotional Needs with Dr. David Marcus
May 13, 2025
Paul Banas
Search Results placeholder

More to See

5 Best Earhook Earbuds That Don’t Fall Out 2025

July 2, 2025 By Paul Banas

smart sprinkler controllers

10 best weather-based smart sprinkler controllers in 2025

July 1, 2025 By Paul Banas

Copyright © 2025 . GreatDad