Dressing

It takes years for children to become independent in dressing as it is a complex activity that requires many pre-requisite skills to be able to perform successfully.

Reference guide

Use the quick reference guide to these early skills in order to support your understanding of the demands that dressing activities place on the child:

Motor skills

A child needs to be able to move their limbs and body in a full range of movements both with and against gravity.

For this, the child must have adequate muscle strength and flexibility and control of their joints.

See Coordinating my body for play and activities advice sheet.

Co-ordination

A child needs to be able to create coordinated movements, using both of their hands individually or together.

Hand dominance is important for movements that require fine motor skills, such as fastening buttons, and a child needs to be able to cross their midline (the middle of their body) to complete tasks such as removing a jumper.

See Being able to use both sides of my body and Being able to reach across my body advice sheets.

Balance

A child must be able to maintain their balance whilst changing position with and without the ability to use their vision.

Fine motor skills

A child must be able to reach, grasp and release objects in order to complete tasks such as buttoning or holding the item of clothing

See Using my hands advice sheet.

Proprioception and body awareness

A child must be able to feel objects to know where they are in relation to their body without relying on vision, for example, finding armholes with a jumper over their head or doing back buttons.

A child must have good awareness of body parts and where their body is in space.

A child must be able to tell the difference between their left and right to know which armhole is correct. They also need to be able to identify their front and back and the front and back of their clothes.

See Using my senses advice sheet.

Your child will gradually learn, step by step, how to undress and dress themselves, do up fastenings and make choices about their clothing. Some children find dressing difficult due to movement or learning difficulties.