My 18 month old eats with her hands and has never been interested in using forks and spoons....is this normal? What age will she start using them? Any tips on how to help her along? Thanks!
2006-12-01 12:34:21 · 14 answers · asked by ♥It's a boy♥ 3 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Toddler & Preschooler
Your 18 month old is completely normal, every toddler goes through this phase...There are ways of getting her interested in using a fork or spoon...for example, when I was trying to get my toddler off the bottle I used sippie cups with characters that he was interested in like elmo and spongebob, that way it felt more like a toy rather than a responsibility..He never wanted to use the bottle again... So if she is interested in something get her a fork or spoon with that certain character on it and when its time to eat she will enjoy using it... Also show her repeatedly how to use one and when she does use it praise her for doing it...clap make alot of noises and she will feel proud of herself...worked for me..good luck..
2006-12-01 12:53:42 · answer #1 · answered by happy2BAlive!! 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
it is perfectly normal for a 18 month old to eat with her fingers. At that age they do not have the fine motor or pincer grasp ability to hold a fork or a spoon!..This is much easier..and ready for them..(hence the term :finger foods")
I work in daycare with small kids 6months -6 years..2 year olds are just getting the hang of holding the fork spoon properly. Table manners is a long way to go to even worry about. Just think of it..as a learning process and development change all kids go thru when eating.Your child is gaining confidence by eating on his/her own..and getting nutrition..that is what counts now..not manners. You could put a spoon by her and let her try it..do not expect pferection..do nto get angry becasue she makes a mess...she is doingher best..and will eventually get the hang of it all.
2006-12-01 21:04:21 · answer #2 · answered by ? 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Most 18 month olds do not have enough hand eye coordination to feed with a fork and spoon.
You can give her a spoon and a fork and let her hold them. You can show her how to use them and praise her when she uses them. Put foods that stick to the spoon on the spoon and let her try to use it. With time, practice and a lot of patience (usually around 2-3 years) she will learn to eat with her utensils.
Finger feeding is a lot easier and should not be frowned upon. Let her explore textures of foods and let her be messy. If you try to insist her to use utensils you may turn your good eater into a picky eater.
I hope this helps and good luck to you!
2006-12-02 12:33:12 · answer #3 · answered by jns 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Don't make it an issue. Don't let people make you feel bad about listening to your child and her desires. "Manners" should be in place because you want to show respect to other people and take their feelings into account, if they are forced, they aren't manners.
At 18-months, it is not your child's job, nor is it even possible, to take other people's feelings or desires into account-so anything you try to do to make it look like your child cares will be superficial on your child's part and forced on yours. She will grow to resent what you consider to be "manners" and may end up doing just the opposite because she has negative assocations with what you forced or coaxed her into doing in the name of her being "polite".
Childhood is the time that people are supposed to care all about your feelings and needs, so that when you become an adult, you are ready to care about others. If you start caring about others(especially grown folk) too soon(like when you are a baby or toddler, which is not naturally the right time) you become a grown "me-me" person, always looking out for yourself cause you feel like you never got a chance to have the world revolve around you(which it should, when you're a kid).
Let her eat with her hands! Join her! I join my son, and he's 16 months. Give her a spoon, give her a fork, but don't ask her to use it or you will turn it into an issue and give her a reason to rebel against you and the utensil. Unless you think she has problems with her hands or fingers, it doesn't matter to her when she uses a fork or spoon, and when it does matter to her, she will. If she were living in another country, she may not use either-ever. She will learn to live in your world, in due time-her time!:-)
2006-12-02 03:31:01 · answer #4 · answered by chicalinda 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Give her a fork or spoon with her meals but don't insist that she use them, she's still very young. My daughter is three and uses a fork and spoon, but not all the time. Just be a good example right now and raise your expectations as she gets older.
2006-12-01 21:23:37 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I think it's fine for baby's at this age to eat with their fingers and hands. As long as it gets where it's supposed to. LOL Just encourage her to use a fork and spoon and she will eventually get the hang of it. My 3 y/o still ocassionally has trouble with them. But he's a messy child anyway LOL. Just gently encourage her when she's eating. Say "see here's how mommy does it". Then hand her the spoon and see if she will try it. If she don't, oh well. Actually it's good for kids to eat using their fingers. It helps with their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.
2006-12-01 20:55:55 · answer #6 · answered by Crystal 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Generally they are 15 months old before they can even attempt to use utensils, and normally have no interest. This is okay, everyone does it. What I did with mine was I'd put whatever the appropriate eating utensil was on the high chair with the food and let them play with it for a while, sometimes getting food where it should go, and sometimes not. If it bothers you so much you can do what I eventually did with one of mine: he just had no interest, so I stopped letting him feed himself. That's right, I fork fed him and he got really upset because he wanted to do it himself, it took no time for him to learn how to use that fork. I'd try letting them try it out on their own first though.
2006-12-01 21:43:34 · answer #7 · answered by ... 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My 2 1/2 year old has been TRYING to use silverware since about 15 months old, and he stil cannot do it..... every now and again he might get a couple of bites in but usually it gets all over his lap ( he always turns the silverware upside down before it hits his mouth) and then he just gives up and uses his hands..... I try to help him all the time.... at first he wanted nothing to do with it but eventually he started trying....... I say, carry plenty of baby wipes, and a bib, yes a bib when you go out ot eat this way she won't stain her shirt...... the baby wipes will clean her up and if she is at home, you can either walk with her to the bathroom, let her stand on a step stool, and help her wash her hands and face...... or give her a bath when she is finished eating...... give it time, sooner or later she will be interested, and eventually she will figure them out..... practice makes perfect.
2006-12-01 20:46:11 · answer #8 · answered by Mommy of 2 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
It's fine for her to eat certain things with her hands, but some things should be eaten with utensils at this age. Things that would make her hands terribly sticky, things that are too small to pick up with fingers like peas or rice, etc. Just hand her a fork/spoon and encourage her to use it. If she doesn't use it then fine, she'll get the hang of it someday. They make sets of dishes that come with forks and spoons for like $10 at the grocery store. They have pictures of Elmo or Dora on them. Maybe if she had a spoon with a cartoon character on it she'd be more interested in using it :-)
2006-12-01 20:38:42 · answer #9 · answered by CelebrateMeHome 6 · 4⤊ 5⤋
my 19 month old still doesnt like utensils, i know a toddler thats 2 1/2 and does perfect with them, with the exception of yogurt by himself. lol
just be a role model, and always eqat at the dinner table and let her watch u eat with them and soon she'll want to..
2006-12-01 21:15:46 · answer #10 · answered by joy 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋