How many shoe sizes does your school aged child grow a year?

[LynnS6]

I realized last week that I've been incredibly lax about checking to see if my kids' shoes fit since I stopped putting them on. I noticed dd struggling to get her shoes on and realized they were too small. When we measured them at the store, she'd gone up a whole size (from 13 to 1). Poor kid!

How often do your kids go up a shoe size when they reach school age?

I'm trying to figure out if it makes sense to buy sandals before June, or are they just going to grow out of them before then. Dd has gone from a 12 last summer to a size 1 now! (And she's only 5 1/2.) Ds seems to wear out his shoes so it's less of an issue.

[Alyantavid]

1-2. We usually buy shoes in August and then again for his birthday (March). And he usually gets yet another pair for the summer and they don't last long.

[SunshineJ]

Not much. Last summer DS started off the summer in his sandals from the previous summer. They were a size 12.5-13 if I remember. He grew into a 13 - 13.5 sometime in the fall and still fits in them fine. I figure by next fall he'll hit a size 1. DD has worn the same pair of sandals for 2 summers running now, and they still fit though she may outgrow them this year (hopefully! She has a pair a larger size, but never needed them!). At closing in on 6, she's got tiny feet and wears a size 9-9.5. I see her firmly in a 9.5 by fall.

ETA: But on the flip side, one year my cousin was complaining that his tennis shoes were too tight. My aunt was annoyed as she'd bought them at the start of summer and it was only August, but she went to get him new ones. When she had his feet measured they discovered he'd grown FOUR sizes in 3 months!

[starlein26]

We switch out shoes annually I think. It doesn't feel like very often.

ETA: Ds is in a 12 (going from 10 to 12 took about 2 1/2 years) and Dd 9 (7-9 took about 2 years).

[MJB]

Maybe about 1? I think my 7 yr. old was a 12 at 4.5-5 (I know because his brother wears those snowboots now) and he's a 1.5 now so 2.5 sizes in over 2 years. I just buy whole sizes, though, so he's wearing 2s now even though he could wear a 1.5.

[4evermom]

I think just one full size... Usually ds needs new sneakers in the fall. Then in the spring, he switches to something cooler (sandals or crocs) which might tend to be more loose fitting or have more toe room so we don't really notice if the same size is too small until we try to put on his old shoes in the fall. I probably buy things a little long because he has wide feet and possibly he stretches them out as he grows into the length.

[EFmom]

I haven't noticed a predictable pattern.

One daughter went up only a half size in the past year. My older dd went from a size 4.5 to a woman's size 7.5 in two months!

[4Marmalade]

My almost 5 year old dd was a size 9 last August and I had her measured last week and they said she's a 10 or 10.5 now. We need to buy new outdoor shoes for school. I haven't measured my oldest ds yet but he tried on his outdoor shoes now that the snow is melting and he said they are tight. They both say their indoor school shoes feel fine though even though they're the smaller sizes . I think in the end we usually go up at least 1 size/year.

[One_Girl]

In the past she has grown 1-2 half sizes, but in the last six months she has gone from a 13 and 1/2 to a 2.

[meemee]

dd goes thru a growth spurt after summer. she eats huge amounts in summer. grows square and rounder. and then right before school she shoots up. grows thinner and tall. i swear she grows a couple of inches over summer. so if i get her clothes that fit her perfectly in june she would have totally outgrown that by september. however if i get her clothes in january they fit her well till august/sept. her thing is sudden shooting up. she is 7 and she has been doing that since i noticed when seh was 4.

she grows 2 shoe sizes a year either two whole sizes or half sizes. once end of summer and once end winter. a couple of years ago seh was going up full sizes. now she goes up half sizes.

i think though this is an individual child thing. her same age friend is much slower and his shoes go up in size maybe once in two years. his shoe size is 2 sizes smaller than dd.

[hipumpkins]

My son about twice a year but my Dd has little feet and they are in no hurry to get bigger. At 7 1/2 she is in a 12 and her brother at 4 1/2 is in an 11.

[limabean]

I don't feel like we buy new shoes for DS very often. He has 2 pairs of warm-weather shoes and 2 pairs of cool-weather shoes, and those seem to last the whole year just fine. The warm-weather shoes sometimes even last 2 years, since things like flip-flops and Crocs are pretty forgiving about sizing.