Editor’s Note: This post has been updated and revised for accuracy on February 2022 and reflects an up-to-date selection of orthotics to help strengthen and straighten kids’ ankles.
Do you have a child that has been diagnosed with rolled ankles? Has your child been complaining about heel pain? There is a particular type of orthotic that has proven to be the most effective one when it comes to strengthen and straighten kids’ ankles. This orthotic will also help improve your child’s overall posture by preventing your kids’ feet from collapsing and turning inwards.
An orthotic is a shoe insert that is designed to provide cushioning, support, and stability, and to relieve pressure areas of the foot. Orthotics can also be referred to as shoe inserts, orthoses, or orthotic insoles.
My Experience Fitting Children’s Shoes and Orthotics
I have been fitting children’s shoes and orthotics for the last 10 years at a specialized children’s shoe store that focuses in helping children with foot and leg problems as well as children with “complicated” foot shapes. Over the years I became familiar with the best orthotics for kids with rolled ankles.
Most parents assume that overpronation occurs from having flat feet, but overpronation can also occur from having rolled ankles. Below are some examples of children with rolled ankles:
If your child has been diagnosed with rolled ankles and has been experiencing ankle and heel pain, the correct pair of orthotics will help significantly reduce or fully eliminate your child’s heel pain. In addition, the correct type of orthotic will also help improve your child’s overall posture. Let me prove it to you!
What a Difference the Correct Type of Orthotics and Shoes Can Make!
Let’s take a look at a picture of a child with rolled ankles wearing two different pairs of shoes with the same orthotic fitted inside them. Notice how straight the child’s feet look when wearing the orthotic in a pair of supportive shoes:
Before Image
Now let’s take a look at the same child wearing the same orthotic but in a pair of shoes that are too flimsy and unsupportive. Do you notice how the child’s feet are still collapsing and rolling inwards?
After Image
The main difference between being flat-footed and having rolled ankles is that an orthotic won’t mold your child’s arch, but an orthotic will be able to straighten and strengthen your kids’ ankles.
Orthotics and shoes work hand to hand when treating your children’s foot conditions.
Rolled ankles can lead your children to overpronate and put pressure on parts of their bodies where they are not supposed to. The orthotic I recommend the most for a child with rolled ankles comes with a deep heel cup that will cushion, support, protect and straighten your kids’ ankles.
Before I show the best orthotic to help treat and correct your child’s rolled ankles, I want to show you 3 important features that this orthotic provides.
✅ 30mm heel cup helps control heel alignment, lower leg alignment, and supports the arch.
✅ Medial and lateral flanges help keep the foot aligned in the orthotic.
✅ Metatarsal support to help relieve and prevent ball of the foot pain.
What Makes the Orthotic I Recommend Effective Rolled Ankles?
The orthotic that I recommend is designed to correct the misalignment caused by flat feet and rolled ankles. Regular insoles are specifically designed to provide cushioning and shock absorption, but they won’t help prevent and correct your child’s rolled ankles.
The orthotic I recommend provides a deep cup that will cushion, strengthen, and straighten your kids’ ankles. This deep heel cup will also enhance your child’s stability:
Now that you know what features this orthotic provides, you are ready to take a look at the best orthotic that helps strengthen and straighten your kids’ ankles.
Best Orthotics to Help Strengthen and Straighten Kids’ Ankles
littleSTEPS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
You Must Enter a Referral Code to Order this Orthotic
To place an order for littleSTEPS® Orthotics, you must submit a Referral Code during the ordering process. Enter the referral code JVFCS100121 in the Discount Window and you will get 10% off your order.
You won’t have to remove the original insoles of your child’s shoes before placing this orthotic inside the shoes.
Take a look at the chart below to figure out what size to order based on your child’s shoe size:
Feel free to reach out to me if you are unsure about what orthotic size to order for your child: fittingchildrensshoes@gmail.com
What a Difference This Orthotic Can Make!
Let’s take a look at what a difference an orthotic can make in improving your child’s overall posture. Below is an image of a child with a low arch and rolled ankles, do you notice how her feet are collapsing and turning inwards?
Now let’s take a look at an image of the same child standing in a pair of orthotics. Do you notice how much straighter the feet look?
One common complaint parents have about this orthotic style is how it slides forward inside certain shoe styles. This is the reason why I always recommend shoes with shoelaces over velcro closure, especially when the child needs an orthotic to be fitted inside the shoes.
Orthotics will only work in certain types of shoes, that is the reason why I also provide a selection of the best shoes for orthotics.
Best Shoes for Orthotics – Extra Deep, Rounder Toe-Boxes and Supportive!
Orthotics make a tremendous difference in the way that your child walks and runs, as long as the orthotics are fitted properly inside your kids’ shoes.
In addition to providing good ankle support, the orthotic must also be fitted in the correct pair of shoes. This means that the shoes must come with a firm heel counter. The heel counter is the back part of the shoes that provides ankle support, and the firmer it is, the better. Take a look at the picture below to identify where the heel counter of the shoe is located:
The shoes and the orthotics work together in preventing and helping treat your child’s foot conditions. This means that if you provide your child with a pair of orthotics that provide good support but the shoes are too flimsy and unsupportive, your child won’t get any of the benefits that the orthotics have to offer and vice versa.
Orthotics take a lot of space inside the shoes, which means that sometimes you might have to provide your child with a pair of wider shoes to accommodate the orthotic inside the shoes.
In addition to being supportive, these are 2 key features that the shoes must provide to be able to accommodate the orthotics:
✅ Extra Depth: This feature allows the orthotics to sit deeply inside your kids’ shoes, which helps prevent your kids from getting the impression that their feet are coming out of the shoes. Let me show you the difference between a deep pair of shoes and one that is shallow. For better visualization purposes, there is an orthotic fitted in both of the shoes below. Do you notice how the orthotic is sitting much deeper in the shoe on the right image compared to the shoe in the left image?
✅ Round Toe-Box: This feature helps prevent the orthotic from poking a hole in the front part of the shoes.
I always recommend shoes that come with shoelaces instead of velcro closure, as shoelaces will provide better support to your child’s feet, in particular around your child’s ankles. Disclosure: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases.
The Best Shoes for Orthotics ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Below you can find a selection of the best shoes for orthotics that are available in medium (M), wide (W), and extra wide (XW).
Toddler Shoe Sizes (0 to 10)
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and cushioned midsoles
- Suede/mesh upper provides durability and breathability
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and a cushioned midsole
- 100% leather made
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, or extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and a cushioned midsole
- Suede/mesh upper provides durability and breathability
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and a cushioned midsole
- Suede/mesh upper provides durability and breathability
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Constructed with a breathable textile lining and an OrthoLite® comfort foam insoles provide moisture transport, antimicrobial function, and long-term cushioning
- Water-friendly
- Double hook-and-loop closure for easy on and off
- Order this boot half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths
- Velcro closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Removable insoles
- Extra deep
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Double velcro straps
- This is an ORTHOPEDIC shoe
- Adjustable double hook and loop closure
- Built-in multi-dimensional orthotic support
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Double velcro straps
- This is an ORTHOPEDIC shoe
- Extra depth and width for orthotics
- Rigid heel counter
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your toddler’s current foot size
Little and Big Kid Shoe Sizes (10.5 to 7)
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths
- Velcro closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Removable insoles
- Extra deep
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Lace-up closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Durable leather upper
- Stability Web outsole technology provides added arch support
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Strong rubber outsole and a cushioned midsole
- Supportive outsoles and firm heel counter
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- NDurance rubber outsole technology provides superior durability in high-wear areas to help get more out of the shoes
- Lace-Up closure
- Non-marking outsole
- Order this shoe a whole larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- This is an ORTHOPEDIC shoe
- Extra depth to accommodate orthotics, AFOS, and internal modifications
- Triple velcro straps
- Thermoplastic rigid heel counter
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- This is an ORTHOPEDIC shoe
- Extra depth to accommodate orthotics, AFOS, and internal modifications
- Triple velcro straps
- Thermoplastic rigid heel counter
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Lace-up closure
- Dual-layer midsole construction featuring top-bed foam cushioning and underfoot Fresh Foam X
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and cushioned midsoles
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths
- Lace-up closure
- Strong rubber outsole and cushioned midsoles
- Suede/mesh upper provides durability and breathability
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Lightweight EVA foam cushioning in the midsole and padded heel increases comfort
- Firm heel counter
- Supportive heel for active kids
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Lightweight EVA foam cushioning in the midsole and padded heel increases comfort
- Firm heel counter
- Supportive heel for active kids
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Supportive leather and mesh upper for breathability and durability
- Cushioned footbed
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Supportive leather and mesh upper for breathability
- Reinforced toe cap for durability
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium and wide widths
- ENCAP midsole cushioning provides good arch and heel support
- Leather and suede upper
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium feet
- The ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
Unsure About What Shoe Size You Should Order?
In each of the descriptions of the shoes I indicate whether you need to order a half a size or a whole size bigger than your child’s foot size to provide the correct amount of growing room.
I strongly suggest that you apply the shoe lacing technique below in order to prevent heel slippage and allow your child to get the full benefits of the orthotics:
How to Tie Shoes with Orthotics – Stop Heel Slippage
Are Any Other Shoe Choices Available?
If none of these shoes are available in your child’s shoe size or if you need the shoes to be made of a specific color don’t hesitate to email me at:
fittingchildrensshoes@gmail.com
When children experience foot or leg pain, most parents make the common mistake of not addressing the issue and they have their children tested for several other conditions that are unrelated to the shoes that they are wearing.
Before you start having your children tested for other conditions, start by taking a look at their feet and provide them with a pair of orthotics and supportive shoes. You will notice what a tremendous difference they make!
Please note that custom orthotics can range anywhere from $250 to $500. Even families with good insurance have reported that custom orthotics are usually not covered.
Please leave your feedback in the comments section below.
0
Do you have a recommendation for sandals with this same support?
Hi Debby,
The Keen Newport is usually my go-to sandal for kids with ankle pain. The sandal comes with a substantial outsole and targeted support right below the heel. It really depends on the degree of your child’s foot condition but it’s worth trying.