Our son is in a private Christian Montessori preschool and they have to have ballet type quiet shoes as they are working independently to keep the room quiet.  I wanted something more masculine looking than typical ballet shoes for him so I found these.  I'm glad I read the reviews to get 3 sizes larger.  He wears an 11 shoe and I ordered a size 1 and they fit well with a little room to grow as the year progresses.