In early childhood, barefoot play is often celebrated. But in School Age Care (SAC), shoes are frequently the default - kept on from the classroom to the OSHC space. What if we paused and asked: what are children and young people’s feet, bodies, and nervous systems asking for when the school day ends?
What if we reframed barefoot time as an evidence-informed wellbeing practice, not just a playful luxury?
More than nature play: why barefoot matters
Being barefoot outdoors is often framed as a sensory experience or a way to connect with nature. And yes - it is grounding, calming, and regulating. But it’s also biomechanically essential.
Children and young people’s feet are not fully developed until their late teens. Bones are still ossifying. Arches are forming. Muscles, tendons and ligaments are adjusting with every step. Rigid, narrow shoes - especially when worn for long periods - can restrict movement, limit strength, and interfere with natural gait development.
Research supports what many educators observe anecdotally: freedom of movement contributes to confidence, comfort, and physical strength. Morrison et al. (2018) found that poorly fitted footwear is linked to reduced balance and motor coordination, while barefoot children displayed better postural stability and stronger foot muscles. Similarly, Sichting et al. (2021) reported that children who wore minimalist footwear - with flexible soles, wide toe boxes and no heel - had significantly improved foot function and balance compared to peers in conventional shoes.
In short, when children and young people move naturally - whether barefoot or in barefoot-friendly shoes - their bodies are learning, strengthening, and integrating in ways structured shoes may inhibit.
Sensory systems, self-regulation & body literacy
The soles of the feet are densely packed with sensory receptors, making them a powerful site for tactile and proprioceptive input. When children and young people walk barefoot, they’re not just stepping - they’re calibrating, adjusting, and receiving feedback that supports balance, coordination, spatial awareness, and emotional regulation (Naboso, n.d.; Teach RARE, 2024).
This sensory stimulation helps develop what some call body literacy - a growing awareness of one’s physical self in space. Through barefoot movement, children and young people are not only playing, but regulating, recalibrating, and reconnecting with their bodies.
In School Age Care, where children and young people often arrive mentally fatigued or emotionally overstimulated from the school day, barefoot play can act as a sensory decompression point - helping them feel grounded, safe, and embodied again.
A needs-based and rights-based perspective
Through the lens of the Phoenix Cups Framework (Phoenix & Phoenix, 2022), human needs like freedom, fun, safety and connection must be met for wellbeing. Barefoot play can fill several of these cups at once.
Likewise, Self-Determination Theory (Ryan & Deci, 2017) highlights the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Barefoot choice respects bodily autonomy, supports physical competence, and fosters connection - with the environment, self, and others.
And through the lens of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 31), we honour every child’s right to play, rest, and engage in cultural practices - some of which naturally include barefoot movement.
Barefoot and belonging: culture and inclusion
In many cultures, barefoot movement is more than a physical state - it’s a cultural expression of freedom, connection, and identity.
In Aotearoa New Zealand, for example, barefoot movement is widely accepted and culturally embedded. Many Māori and Pākehā families see barefoot play as supporting physical health, confidence, and connection to whenua - the land (de Turenne, 2024).
Here in Australia, many First Nations Peoples hold deeply embodied, relational connections to Country. Walking barefoot can symbolise and support a way of being that is attuned to place, respectful of natural rhythms, and connected through the senses. Within First Nations pedagogies, learning is holistic, lived, and felt - Country is the teacher, and children learn through immersion, observation, and movement.
Both the Early Years Learning Framework V2.0 and My Time Our Place V2.0 frameworks also acknowledge that connecting with land and nature is essential to identity and wellbeing. Barefoot play - when embedded with cultural awareness and genuine intention - can be one way we support children and young people to feel grounded, strong in their bodies, and connected to place.
“Country is not just land. It is a living entity, a teacher, a source of identity, law and belonging.” - adapted from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives on pedagogy (UNESCO, 2022)
In School Age Care, barefoot play can become more than a choice of footwear - it can be part of how we honour body autonomy, cultural practices, and connection to place. Not every child or young person will want or be able to go barefoot - but the invitation to feel the land beneath them, to move freely, and to connect through their senses can be a gentle act of cultural respect.
Responsive, not rigid: rethinking footwear policies
Following on from these cultural and sensory insights, a rich conversation with a colleague reframed barefoot practice for me - not as an all-or-nothing approach, but as a form of foot literacy and body autonomy.
“Even when children aren’t barefoot, they can still move like they are - if they have the right footwear…”
This sparked a valuable reflection: supporting foot health, movement, and sensory wellbeing doesn’t require rigid barefoot-or-not rules. Instead, it invites us to design environments that are informed, flexible, and child-centered.
Not all spaces - or children - will be suited to barefoot play every day. But we can still offer:
- Barefoot-friendly zones
- Choice about shoes indoors/outdoors
- Encouragement of minimalist footwear that respects the natural shape and function of children and young people’s feet
Ultimately, it’s about respecting bodies, offering autonomy, and creating conditions where all children and young people can move, feel, and belong.
Practice ideas for SAC teams
- Create a barefoot-friendly zone (e.g., yarning circle, garden, balance beams, playground, OSHC room)
- Co-create barefoot agreements with children and young people: “What do we need to check for safety?”
- Provide foot-washing stations and warm mats for sensory-sensitive children and young people
- Include minimalist footwear in conversations with families
- Invite children and young people to track how they feel with and without shoes - what changes?
- Build in a “shoes off” ritual as a symbolic shift from school mode to SAC mode
As a Team, Consider...
- What do our current footwear expectations communicate to children and young people?
- Are we supporting children and young people’s right to choose how they move and play?
- How might barefoot time support children and young people who struggle with transitions or sensory regulation?
- What personal biases do we hold about feet, safety, or control that might be worth unlearning?
- Are we offering what we would want after a long day - freedom, movement, grounding?
Hold this thought
Going barefoot isn’t just for babies - it’s for every child and young person who needs to move, regulate, and reconnect.
In School Aged Care, where transitions are many and autonomy is essential, barefoot time can be a quiet yet powerful act of wellbeing. It honours bodies. It nurtures nervous systems. It invites joy.
And sometimes, it’s exactly what a child - or young person - needs to feel steady, centred, and fully themselves again.
References
Department of Education, Skills and Employment. (2022). My Time Our Place: Framework for School Age Care in Australia V2.0.
de Turenne, S. (2024, June 8). For New Zealand parents, barefoot children are happy children. Le Monde. https://www.lemonde.fr/en/intimacy/article/2024/06/08/for-new-zealand-parents-barefoot-children-are-happy-children_6674188_310.html
Harrison, N. (2011). Teaching and Learning in Aboriginal Education. Oxford University Press.
Morrison, S. C., Price, C., McClymont, J., & Nester, C. (2018). Big issues for small feet: Developmental, biomechanical and clinical narratives on children's footwear. Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, 11(1), 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13047-018-0281-2
Naboso. (2019). Benefits of barefoot stimulation for children. https://uk.naboso.com/blogs/the-barefoot-advantage/benefits-of-barefoot-stimulation-for-children
Phoenix, K., & Phoenix, C. (2022). The Phoenix Cups: A cup-filling framework for wellbeing. Cup Filling Publications.
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2017). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness. Guilford Press.
Author: