How to teach a child to eat with a spoon

Raising a child is a very responsible process that does not end for a minute. First, a newborn baby needs only love, caress and care. However, gradually we try to teach the crumb to various household skills - in six months the baby begins to try “adult” food, learns to play toys and finger games, learns loved ones, smiles at them, goes through the first stages of socialization. At the same time, parents try to teach the child all the new skills, and this desire is really wonderful. One of the main skills of a child is the ability to eat with a spoon. In this article we will try to figure out how to teach a child to eat with a spoon, when to start learning and what to do if the kid completely refuses to cutlery.

When to teach a child to eat with a spoon

Unfortunately, today's practice shows that modern children learn everyday skills much longer than their parents at the same age.Take a look at any garden with a three-year-old group - some of the children of this age still wear diapers, and some still cannot eat normally with a spoon. A few decades ago, children were sent to kindergarten much earlier, for three years they were perfectly dressed, went to the pot and ate on their own. The problem of the modern generation in excessive care and an excess of aids (talking about diapers). That is why mothers should understand that you should not take care of the child too much, you need to give him the opportunity to learn, try new things, even if it does not always work out.

From the age of 6 months, babies start feeding with cereals, fruit and vegetable purees, followed by meat and soups. The baby grows and develops, its nervous system is getting stronger. Sooner or later, the child will be interested in the spoon and will try to wrest it from her mother's hand. At this very moment, you do not need to resist and worry that the baby is all about it. As a rule, the first acquaintance with a spoon occurs in 8-10 months. If the baby took the spoon in his hand earlier - do not resist, just feed the crumbs with another spoon. The latest date, when you should start to teach a child to a spoon, is a year and a half. But, as a rule, it’s not necessary to wait until this time, the kid himself will be interested in cutlery.

Which spoon to choose

In Russia, a child who has got the first tooth gets a silver spoon. This is a wonderful sign, and it should preferably give godparents. It is believed that the baby "with a silver spoon in his mouth" will never have problems with nutrition in the future. However, there are signs and practical sense - silver perfectly disinfects food, so they try to protect the baby from all sorts of bacteria and microbes. However, pediatricians are not advised to give the child a silver spoon as the first cutlery. After all, the metal is quite hard, it can hurt fragile milk teeth and tender gums. Silver spoon can be used after 2-3 years, when the baby finally mastered this skill. But what kind of spoon to choose for the first independent meals?

It is best to buy rubber or silicone spoons for the first feeding. Often they can be made of plastic, but have a soft rubber tip. Such a spoon does not traumatize the oral cavity of the child; after eating, the baby can chew on an object with pleasure and scratch the teeth that are erupting.Modern manufacturers of children's products represent to our attention anatomical spoons, which are conveniently kept in a small handle, they do not slide off, they are not difficult to bring to the mouth. Such products are convenient to use both right-handed and left-handed. Note that the spoons can be deep or shallow, almost flat, like a spatula. The first ones are for soup, we don’t need such spoons yet. While the mother is going to feed the child herself with the soup, it’s better to start the learning process with viscous products - mashed potatoes, porridge. They need flat spoons. It is very convenient to eat from them - the baby will not need to raise his hand too high to get the contents of a spoon in his mouth.

Rubber and silicone spoons can be sterilized, boiled, and disinfected in a microwave without problems. Quality products do not melt from high temperatures and do not emit hazardous substances. Another advantage of silicone products - they do not heat up from food, do not burn the delicate skin of a child. In addition, they are very light in weight, just right for a baby of the first year of life, they are very easy to handle.

However, in some cases, parents (and even children) prefer metal spoons. A teaspoon to feed a baby is a classic. On sale you can also find heat-sensitive spoons. This is a modern development, the spoon changes color if the food is too hot and dangerous for the baby. Such spoons are especially convenient if you are used to heating food in the microwave - often the food can be hot inside the whole mass. Remember that all baby dishes should be of high quality, no dubious and cheap plastic that secretes harmful toxins in food.

Moms and dads, who are just preparing for this status, need to know that a spoon can be needed from the very birth, even if the baby is breastfed. You can give medicine in a spoon. They give breast milk from a spoon, when the baby has a cold and his nose is clogged. As you know, in case of disturbed nasal breathing, the process of sucking the breast is much more complicated.

How to teach a child to eat with a spoon

Do not expect that the baby will immediately begin to use the spoon as intended, as soon as it snatches it from your hands.He can knock it, scatter food, poke a spoon in the face of a cat, but just not use it in the process of eating. Therefore, before a meal you need to spend some training.

To start, lay a small oilcloth under the feeding chair - this will protect the floor from food, which will invariably fall. Be sure to wear a baby bib, and preferably even a cap, because often the porridge is on the head and in the hair. It is advisable to buy a stable dish for the child - it must be either heavy or on suckers so that the baby does not knock over the plate. Try to devote the process of eating a separate time, you can not eat on the run, in the living room or under the cartoons. So a child from early childhood is formed the right attitude to food. It will be much better if the baby will eat simultaneously with the rest of the family. For a child, this is a great example - everyone eats from spoons, and does it neatly.

First, put a spoon in the baby’s hand. If the baby is holding the device incorrectly, do not try to fix it, with time everything will go on track.

Holding the baby’s hand with a spoon in your hand, gently sprinkle the porridge and mark the spoon in your mouth.Until the baby has developed muscular memory, it is necessary to help him in the first few days. Gradually, the child will understand everything and will eat from a spoon without your help.

Remember that it is worthwhile to begin learning only if the child has shown interest in the spoon. Otherwise, you only get soiled around the surface.

Training must occur within the game. A child should not be forced, rushed or scolded. Mom requires love and patience.

Try to eat more often in front of the child. After all, young children often repeat after adults. The kid will see how to properly hold a spoon, how to wield it, he will understand that this is an essential attribute of adult life. If your baby already has a little spoonful, publicly inform such a big achievement to your dad and grandmother. The child already understands a lot, for him it is a matter of pride.

There are kids who perceive the spoon as a toy. In this case, do not give the table item at another time, only during the meal. You can understand the meaning and purpose of the spoon with the help of toys. Sow dolls and bears on the sofa, feed them with a spoon from a toy bowl.

Let the advice sound a bit strange, but try to play more often in the sandbox. Sand shovel is an enlarged copy of a spoon. Playing with a spatula, the baby will learn to better manage with a spoon.

At the time of training, try to choose for the baby those dishes that he prefers. A child likes banana puree - offer this delicacy with a spoon.

Do not scold the child if he wants to eat with his hands, and not with a spoon, just the baby has not yet matured to the ownership of cutlery. In this case, the learning process is better to postpone.

To make the child more interesting, you can offer him a choice of a few spoons - one of the offered ones will certainly suit his taste. In some cases, babies prefer forks. Do not be afraid of injuries - children's forks are not dangerous, as they are not sharp, the edges of the device are blunted.

It is clear that at first, only one of three spoons will reach the mouth. Therefore, do not forget to feed your child with your spoon in parallel so that the baby does not go hungry.

Very effective children's game with a typewriter and a garage. Explain to the child that the spoon is a machine that should go right into the garage - that is, in the mouth. You can accompany the process with the sounds “AAA-A-AM”.Try not to use “VZHZh” sounds or other imitation syllables, otherwise the child may choke in the process of eating.

And remember that learning should take place in a relaxed and healthy environment. You can not accustom the child to the spoon, if he is sick, if his teeth are cut, if there are guests in the house or you have temporarily arrived to visit his grandmother. In no case can you compare a child with a neighbor, brother or friend, especially older children, who already understand a lot. So you cultivate children's complexes in the little man.

In the learning process, the most important thing is the lack of learning. As a rule, if a child often sees people eating, he will gradually learn it himself, just give the kid some time and freedom. Sit down to have lunch together, offer the child a spoon and eat your portion calmly, without bothering the child.After all, children often learn best to be independent in kindergarten, when everyone around them just eats, and no one is above the soul and does not repeat how to hold a spoon. Believe in your child, trust him, calm down and everything will certainly work out for him!

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