when should a child start using a spoon to eat, already a picky eater.?

Question

I already have a hard time getting him to eat in general. He wants to do everything himself and I am afraid he gets bored with finger foods. Will not try any gerber graduate food and still loves his bottle. Milk or water, he never took to a pacifier so he uses this as comfort I think?

my child is almost 20 months old, he will not sit in his high chair, the only way I can get him to eat is to put in on our coffee table and he will graze and eat. If I try to put him in his chair with a spoon or even food he throws a fit and refuses to eat. He also still likes to have his bottles, and I can't seem to break him of this habit. He is a very picky eater so I run out of things to give him. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

Hand him a spoon at ten months and whether or not he can use it correctly doesn't matter. He'll try to cram it in and he'll make a huge mess, but he'll figure it out quickly. As he's playing with the spoon and putting it in and out of his mouth, you can slide in his food while he's distracted with his own spoon.

Answer 2

You can start giving your child a spoon between 6-8 months. Of course when they first start, they will just hold it. I would give them a spoon while you are feeding them. Then, they will slowly start to realize that they can do it. So with an older baby, closer to 10 months, I feed them about half the food, then let them do the rest. Have you tried Gerber Graduates? It is really gross, and there is a lot of sodium, not that good for him. So just feed him what you eat for dinner or lunch, just cut it up smaller. Slowly switch to sippy cups, especially at meal times. Use the bottles for morning, and night, maybe an afternoon bottle, depending on the age of the child. Good luck.

Answer 3

my daughter is 18 months old and i have a similar problem, i was told at the child health clinic she should be feeding herself by now, she eats almost anything we give her and will eat off a spoon if we load it up for her but she can't get the food on the spoon herself, gives it a few tries but usually gives up end ends up picking the food up with her fingers, which makes a huge mess, we've been giving her a spoon for almost two months now but she still doesn't get it, meal times are really frustrating. Most people i talk to say put her in a wet area and let her go for it.

Answer 4

My now 2 year old was/is always very independant, wanting to do everything for herself. Generally I found persistance paid off, if it was messy, most times I would say no, and wouldnt let her have it by herself. There is generally no point doing it too soon anyways, since they dont have the dexterity it would take.

Let him practise his dexterity on other things, and things that arent too messy, until generally around 2 years old. About that age, they tend to learn the intricacies of using a spoon for messier things much easier, but still start with 'easier' (thicker) foods that wont slide off the spoon so easily. He'll pick it up pretty quick at that point, and will be less mess for you!

Remember, persistance, though. If you give in, even once, it will make it more difficult for yourself next time, when he will think "Well, I did it last time, why not this time?" (And feel free to explain your reasoning too, even if they dont understand it all, I've found explaining seems to help.)

Answer 5

Okay, Boys unfortunately do take a little longer than the girls.
However for the want of trying I'd say at the age of 14 to 18 months is a very practical age. If one is able to hold a piece of fruit or bread your able to hold a spoon.
It may be alittle messy at the, start but its good practise. just like potty training.

Praise him each time he does something right, also at the same time get him to hold his own cup. It's all to do with a child having to balance with different objects. You may think it's time consuming, but believe me its a matter of patience.
Frustration on his part is normal, Practice makes perfect.

Once he has the hang of it, he will love and enjoy meals, what ever you give him.
Good luck.

Answer 6

As soon as my girls could articulate their fingers to grip a spoon, I handed them one during feeding time so they were able to attempt it themselves. That was around 6-7mths when breastfeeding stopped and mushy everything began. It is a messy process regardless of who shovels the food in, so you can just count it as practice.

Either way, kids advance at their own pace, they will do things when they are ready to do so and no sooner.

Answer 7

When they try to put it in there mouth and miss you have a spoon on stanby to make them think they got it. I done this with my two girls it only lasted for a couple of first spoonfuls but it is more than nothing.

Answer 8

I don't think there's any set age. What I do when I feed my son something from a spoon (like yogurt or oatmeal), I put the bowl on his tray and give him a spoon, too. We take turns feeding him.

Answer 9

How old is he? I gave my daughter a spoon when she was quite young and let her make a big mess. I would feed her as she attempted to feed herself. Try mixing different finger foods or cutting foods into different shapes.

Answer 10

for favourite toddlers it won't rely the two way. you could introduce them wherein ever order you desire, or in no order in any respect. as quickly as toddlers are bodily waiting to consume solids they're waiting to deal with maximum kinds of foodstuff with none problem. some advise vegetables first when you consider that end result might reason toddlers to develop a candy tooth. when you consider that breast milk is already fairly candy, nevertheless, it is fairly as much as you to make certain. Meats commonly are harder to digest so as that they are suggested as between the final to be presented. assorted vegetables like corn and peas additionally are fairly confusing to digest nevertheless, so if it is an argument you're able to look at beginning with ingredients that have not have been given a stressful outer pores and skin it is often eaten. sturdy success with what ever you make certain.