Out of the many challenges that parenthood brings, one is to teach a child how to self-feed. Inculcating the habit of self-feeding from an early age is not only good for the child but also for you as when the child eats on his own, you can sit back and enjoy your own meal at the same time . Teaching self-feeding may take time but when achieved, it will prove to be a good decision. The following are the top ways to teach a child how to self-feed:
Finger Feeding
Self-feeding includes finger feeding as the very first and basic step. Finger feeding can be started as early as 8 months of age and is way in which your child tries to hold the little pieces of foods to shove it into the mouth. This method may be ineffective for most babies but they still manage and learn to grasp in a few days.
To teach your little one how to finger feed, you have to be very patient and let them try again and again. Give him dry puffs of food and see if he tries to grasp them. If he manages to grasp the food, see if he successfully puts it in the mouth. It may fall off on many occasions but with practice, your child will get it right.
Spoon Feeding
Once your baby is big enough to eat successfully using his fingers, you must teach him to spoon-feed on his own. Kids are generally capable enough of spoon feeding by the age of 2 but many learn even earlier than that. To develop this habit, you will have to let the toddler try.
Hand him over the spoon and let him make the first few attempts, even if they end up in vain. Once he gets used to the feel, touch and proper grasp of the spoon, let him attempt to put the food in the spoon successfully in the mouth. With regular practice and training, he will get a hang of it.
Fork Feeding
Only after mastering spoon feeding should you jump to fork feeding training. Fork can relatively be trickier and its habit should only be developed by 2 years of age. Try getting a plastic fork and place a chicken nugget or a cube of cheese near it. It may take a long time for your baby to get fork feeding right but he eventually will.
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