The Bunny Ears Shoe Tying Method: Steps, Fixes, and When to Use It

You taught your child the bunny ears shoe tying method because everyone said it was the easy one. Then the bow came undone before they reached the end of the driveway.

The method is not the problem. There is one specific mistake that makes a bunny ears knot slip, almost every child makes it, and virtually no tutorial mentions it. Below are the steps done properly, the fix for the slipping knot, and an honest answer to whether this is the right method for your child at all.

What the bunny ears method actually is

Bunny ears is a two-loop knot. Instead of making one loop and wrapping the other lace around it, your child makes both loops first, then crosses and ties them together like a second starting knot.

Knot people call it the two loop shoelace knot. Children call it bunny ears because the two loops stick up like a rabbit's. Either way, the finished bow is identical to a standard bow — the difference is entirely in how you get there.

Why it is easier for young children

The standard method asks a child to hold one loop under tension with one hand while the other hand wraps a lace around it, finds a gap they cannot really see, and pushes a bend of lace through it. That is three hard things happening at once.

Bunny ears breaks that apart. Both loops get made independently, with two free hands. Then the child does a move they already know — crossing two things over and pushing one under — because it is the same motion as the starting knot they tied thirty seconds ago.

For children with fine motor delays or shaky bilateral coordination, that restructuring is often the difference between failure and success. It is also why so many occupational therapists reach for it first.

The bunny ears method, step by step

Step 1 — The starting knot

Cross the right lace over the left to make an X. Tuck the right lace down under the X and pull both ends firmly. Pull sideways, not upward — sideways tightens the knot flat against the shoe. Remember which lace went on top; you will need that in a moment.

Step 2 — Make two ears

Fold each lace back on itself into a loop and pinch the base of each loop between thumb and forefinger. Aim for loops about the length of your child's thumb. Long loops look easier but flop over; short loops are hard to grab. Thumb length is the sweet spot.

Step 3 — Cross the ears

Cross one ear over the other to make an X, exactly like Step 1. Here is the part that matters: cross the opposite lace on top this time. If the right lace went over in your starting knot, the left ear goes over now.

Step 4 — Through the hole

Push the top ear down through the gap underneath the X. Your child pushes with a finger rather than threading — pushing is far easier than threading for small hands.

Step 5 — Pull and check

Grab one loop in each hand and pull outward. Then check the bow: it should sit across the shoe, pointing left and right. If it twists and points toward the toe and the ankle, the knot is wrong, and it will come undone.

The rhyme that makes the steps stick

Say it while your child's hands are moving, not before:

Bunny ears, bunny ears, standing up tall.
Cross them over, don't let them fall.
Through the hole and out the other side,
Pull them tight and off you ride.

One rhyme only. Children who hear three different versions from three different adults end up more confused than if nobody had rhymed at all. Our roundup of shoe tying rhymes for kids has alternatives if this one does not land.

Why your child's bunny ears knot keeps falling apart

The granny knot problem

This is the thing nobody tells parents. If your child crosses the same lace on top in Step 3 as they did in Step 1, they have tied a granny knot. If they cross the opposite lace, they have tied a square knot.

The square knot holds. The granny knot slips. As Ian's Shoelace Site documents in detail, this single difference in direction is the reason most "bad" shoelace knots are bad. It has nothing to do with the child's effort or the quality of the laces.

How to check which knot your child is tying

Look at the finished bow. A square knot sits flat and horizontal across the shoe. A granny knot sits diagonally, twisted, with the loops pointing toward the toe and the heel. Once you know to look for it, you will spot it in a second.

The one-word fix

Say "other one" at Step 3. That is the whole correction. Your child crosses the opposite lace on top, the bow sits flat, and it stops coming undone. Parents are often startled by how completely this fixes a problem they have been fighting for months.

Who the bunny ears method is best for

• Children aged four to six learning for the first time
• Children with fine motor delays or weak bilateral coordination
• Children who have failed repeatedly with the standard method and need a fresh start
• Children who find the one-handed loop-holding step impossible

If your child struggles because they forget the sequence rather than because their hands cannot manage it, the method is not your bottleneck. Our guide to working memory and shoe tying covers that case.

When to move on from bunny ears

Bunny ears is not a lesser knot. Tied correctly, the finished bow is exactly as secure as one tied the standard way, and plenty of adults use it for life.

The honest reasons to switch are speed and self-consciousness. Bunny ears takes a couple of seconds longer, and by around age nine or ten some children notice that friends tie differently. If your child is fluent, comfortable, and does not care, leave it alone. If they ask to learn "the grown-up way," teach it then — the standard method walkthrough is here.

Five teaching mistakes to avoid

1. Sitting face to face. Your child has to mentally mirror everything you do. Sit behind them or beside them so they see the same view as their own hands.
2. Practicing on a shoe they are wearing. The angle is bad and the pressure is worse. Put the shoe on the table.
3. Using two laces of the same color. "Cross this one over that one" is meaningless when both are white. Two-color laces make every instruction concrete.
4. Teaching all five steps in one sitting. One step a day, two minutes each. The full task analysis of shoe tying shows how granular the breakdown can get.
5. Fixing the bow yourself. If you retie it, your child learned nothing except that you will retie it.

Left-handed children need the whole sequence mirrored, not just adapted. Our guide to teaching a left-handed child covers the differences.

Frequently asked questions

Is the bunny ears method bad for kids?
No. Tied as a square knot it is exactly as secure as a standard bow. The method's bad reputation comes entirely from children unknowingly tying granny knots, which slip.

What age can a child learn bunny ears?
Many children manage it from around four, and it is a reasonable first method for any child aged four to seven. Readiness matters more than the number — your child should be able to make and hold a loop with two hands before you start.

Why does my child's bunny ears bow come undone?
Almost always a granny knot. Check whether the bow sits flat across the shoe or twists diagonally. If it twists, have your child cross the opposite lace on top in Step 3.

Bunny ears or loop, swoop and pull — which is better?
Bunny ears is easier to learn; loop, swoop and pull is faster once mastered. For a first-time learner, or any child with fine motor difficulties, start with bunny ears.

Should I make the loops big or small?
About the length of your child's thumb. Oversized loops flop over and drag on the ground; tiny loops are impossible to grip.

My child can do bunny ears but not on their own foot. Is that normal?
Completely normal. Tying at an angle on your own foot is a separate skill from tying a shoe on a table. Once the tabletop version is fluent, move the shoe to the floor, then to the foot.

Getting the repetitions in

Most children need dozens of successful attempts before the movement becomes automatic. The obstacle is rarely willingness — it is that every slipped lace sends them back to the start, and a child only tolerates so many restarts before they are done for the day.

If your child keeps losing the first loop before the second ear exists, the Training Ties shoe-tying tool holds that loop steady so they can practice the crossing and pushing without rebuilding everything each time. It is designed to give kids more repetitions of the step they are actually stuck on, which is usually all that stands between them and a bow they tied themselves.