The skill of using a spoon while eating is the very first self-service skill that a baby will get to know. Parents turn to spoon feeding their baby when they begin to introduce the first complementary foods with porridge or puree. In most cases, this occurs at 4.5-6 months. At this age, children still cannot eat with a spoon on their own. And if they hold this cutlery correctly, then they cannot feed themselves. Therefore, parents have to be patient and calm until their baby learns to use a spoon. Our tips and tricks will help moms and dads to quickly and easily teach their kids to spoon.
10 tips to teach your child to eat with a spoon
- To feed the baby, you need to choose the "right" spoon: it should be shallow, rubberized, comfortable. You can easily find similar cutlery on the shelves of children's supermarkets. And sales assistants will tell you which model is best to choose in accordance with the age of the child.
- Do not let your baby play with the spoon, but do not miss the opportunity to offer him to hold it every time you feed. The child must clearly understand the causal relationship "spoon-food".
- Show by your own example how to handle this cutlery correctly. Be sure to say the name of the item ("This is a spoon") and its purpose ("They eat her porridge, mashed potatoes, soup").
- At first, the child must master the ability to correctly and confidently hold a spoon in his hand. The toddler will knock on the table with a spoon, push it into the mouth, but just not use it for its intended purpose. This is normal. Let the kid get to know this cutlery better.
- Only after that you can invite him to try to grab porridge or mashed potatoes with a spoon (this action is successful, as a rule, in 8-9 months).
- The first handling of a spoon by children is always uncertain. The kid can scatter half of the contents, get dirty, carry it past the mouth. Do not in any way scold him for this!
- The best thing a mother can do when teaching her child to use a spoon is to be tolerant of his little failures and to enjoy the first successes. Help the kid in this difficult task for him, gently guide his handle at every stage - from scooping up the porridge to sending it into the mouth. The child should feel your help and support. And such interaction with his mother will be not only useful for him, but also very pleasant.
- If the baby has learned to grab the porridge with a spoon and direct it to the mouth, there is no need to rush him. Give the baby time. Sometimes eating alone can be delayed. Be patient! And soon the baby's hesitant movements will become accurate and precise.
- Remember that for a child, using a spoon is a process that requires concentration, effort, coordination of movements. Therefore, such a business can quickly tire him. Give the little one time to rest (at this moment you can offer him a drink or wipe his soiled cheeks).
- Eat often with your child. Put him in a highchair, put a plate of porridge in front of him, equip the child with a cutlery, and sit next to him. The child, seeing your manipulations, will imitate them. Besides, he will know - mom does the same!Psychologists believe that the visualization of actions not only contributes to the rapid development of the skill, but also gives the child a sense of trust.
Do not forget that more than one month will pass before the baby learns to use a spoon carefully. For him, this new and challenging skill means much more than simple self-care. This is a new stage in its development!
Recommended by topic:
- How to teach a child to eat independently and accurately - complete instructions for parents
- Teaching the kid to drink from the mug
- What to do if the child does not want to eat complementary foods (and what to do if the child does not want to eat from a spoon)
- On the choice of the first dishes - https://razvitie-krohi.ru/veshhi-dlya-malyisha/pervaya-posuda-dlya-rebenka.html
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