This is a guest article from Vertbaudet, a European website and catalog specializing in clothing and furnishings for children ages newborn to fourteen.
Children are keen to show their independence from a very young age, and even small toddlers will try to do things like take off their baby clothes by themselves without any help. This is a natural and important part of growing up, and they need a lot of support as they learn to do things on their own. Dressing is a particular area that many little ones try to master early on, by trying to put on and take off boys clothes or girls dresses all by themselves.
Although early attempts often go wrong, children aged as young as two can in fact begin to learn how to dress themselves. This is actually an important milestone in the child’s development, as independent dressing should be established by the time they start attending school, when they will need to be able to change their own clothes for games and swimming lessons.
When choosing children’s clothes, look out for special design features in boys clothes and girls dresses that will encourage children to learn to dress themselves. Examples might include T-shirts, tops and dresses that are reversible, making it impossible for children to put them on back-to-front. Look for elasticated waistbands to make trousers easy to pull on and take off, as well as tops, dresses and trousers that are specially designed for small hands to slip on easily. Consider also how and where the clothes need to be fastened, velcro on girls shoes for example is easier than laces, zippers with tabs that are easy for a child to grip and pull without any help are also good, as are press-studs that are easy to fasten and buttons and buttonholes that are colour coordinated will all help to encourage independent dressing.
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