Your preschooler is already pitching in when you dress her up – she puts out her leg to wear a trouser, and tries to find the armhole, when you’re slipping a T-shirt over her head.

When to comes to dressing up, it will be a while before your child can actually pick out her clothes, and dress up on her own. Patience is key. Don’t be discouraged if she can’t dress without help. And never force her. You can pick out her clothes, and lay them out on the bed for her in the morning, but it will take time till she’s independent enough to actually dress herself up. Some kids just pick up faster – it’s no big deal if she doesn’t. My son himself only picked up these skills when he turned 6. No long term damage there.

Ready? Let’s start with the coat, then.

Place the coat on the floor with the open end facing up, and sleeves spread out. Let your child squat down near the neck of the coat, and slip her arms inside the arm holes. Then she can lift her arms up and over her head, and the coat will slide very naturally down her arms, and around her. Practice makes perfect.

For pants, demonstration works best. Sit her down beside you on the bed or floor, and let her copy your movements. Teach her to pull zippers away from her body.

For underpants, teach her to look for the little label at the back. If there are no labels, make a little mark with a permanent nontoxic marker to indicate the back.

I love this tip from Parent Hacks to teach your child to slip on her mittens. Hold the mitten on your palm with the opening facing her, and let her slide her palm inside. It’s easier for her than to struggle with the mitten with her own two hands.

Teach her to loop the belt into the loops before she puts her pants on. Mark the exact belt hole she needs, with a small piece of adhesive, or circle it with a marker from the inside.

Use the marker to make putting socks on easier – make a sign at the heel. This is where most kids fumble.

To help her tell between left and right shoes, take a marker, and make complementary signs on the inside of each shoe, so when she places them together, the marks face each other. For instance, try a “ >” sign for the left shoe, and a ” <” sign for the right shoe. Tell her, “When these two arrows face other, then your shoes are ready to wear.” Try other variations – have two half circles facing each other. Or just peg them together in the correct order with clothespins.

More Dressing Up Tips

• Always stuff one sock or mitten inside the other, so you can always find a perfectly matched pair. Or clip together with clothespins.
• Use a diaper pin to attach a pair of socks or mittens, and let them stay attached through laundry, drying and back in the drawer. You’ll never have to look for a missing pair again.
• Keep clothes in your child’s closet in complete sets, so she always has a full set that’s ready to wear. It encourages her to try dressing up on her own.
• Teach your child to make a fist when she puts her hand inside a sleeve.
• If possible, get clothing with prints or appliqués in the front, so she can differentiate the front and back on her own. For plain colored t-shirts, teach her that the label end comes at the back.
• To slip on a T-shirt, let her first place the T-shirt front down on the bed. She can then slip it over her head, and down, easily.
• If dressing up in the morning rush seems hard, try getting your preschooler to wear her clothes at night before she goes to bed. Choose only non wrinkly fabrics, and use a plastic bib to protect her clothes during her brushing and face washing routine, and you should be fine. This doesn’t work with a bed wetter, of course.
• As far as possible, use shoes with Velcro for preschoolers. They’re just easier and hassle free. Or till she gets to the point where she can tie shoelaces on her own, substitute the laces with a piece of elastic tied at the ends – she can slip and out of the shoes with ease. Some parents are of the opinion that getting shoes with Velcro fasteners or slip ons makes it harder to teach them to tie shoelaces. I think, it’s important not to overwhelm your child. They have plenty of time to learn these skills, and the chances that you’ll still be tying her shoe laces when she’s in college, are pretty slim.
• Use the wooden handles of a chair to practice tying laces into a knot. Use ribbons for practice. Be patient – tying shoelaces tends to be one of the harder skills, since it requires such fine motor skills.
• Nail a smaller coat rack for your child near the entrance, so she can hang up her coat on her own. Nail a wicker basket to hold her mittens, and small scarves. Keep a small stool handy, so she can sit down and put her socks and shoes on with ease.
• Teach her to button shirts from the bottom up – it makes it easier to get them all even.
• Build self confidence in her dressing skills by letting her overcome the smaller challenges first. Buy pants and skirts with elastic waistbands or Velcro fasteners, so she can handle them easily. The same goes for shoes.
• Velcro is a smart Mommy’s best friend – sew on a patch instead of a button on your child’s overalls, and place them on shoes.

So, how did you teach your preschooler to dress up on her own?