Does your toddler take forever to eat on his own? Or is he always leaving his seat in the middle of the meal? DR RICHARD C. WOOLSON tells you how to manage these challenges.
Does your toddler take forever to eat on his own? Or is he always leaving his seat in the middle of the meal? DR RICHARD C. WOOLSON tells you how to manage these challenges.
When your baby started eating solids, you held the spoon for him because he did not have the hand control to feed himself.
But now that he’s a toddler, you can start to let go and allow him the opportunity to eat without help.
Self-feeding offers several benefits for your child. It can:
• Improve his self-confidence and help develop his drive towards independence and the enthusiasm to perform tasks by himself.
• Increase his appetite since he is more actively involved in transferring food from his plate to his mouth, than when he is being fed.
• Strengthen his hand control as holding a spoon requires concentration and coordination.
• Free up your time so you can focus on chatting with him or complete another task as he is eating.
Of course, in the beginning, mealtimes often will take longer. Here are some of the problems that you can anticipate when he is learning how to feed himself:
He creates a huge mess, and gets more food on the floor than in his mouth. Be patient. As your toddler learns to feed himself, expect the food to go everywhere – not just into his mouth – because his coordination isn’t fully developed. Clean up the mess without reprimanding your toddler or complaining.
He leaves the table and wanders around, instead of sitting still. Make each meal an enjoyable experience. If eating is fun and pleasurable, your toddler will sit happily at the table without wanting to get out of his seat. Create a relaxed atmosphere; sit beside him and chat with him while he eats on his own.
He takes forever to finish his meal. Stop the meal after a fixed time. To ensure that self-feeding does not become a lengthy play activity, remove your toddler’s plate after a reasonable time (say, 15 minutes) and warn him in advance when that time limit approaches. This discourages him from wasting time.
He is a picky eater and skips his vegetables. Give him small amounts of food on a large plate. Your toddler may be put off by large mounds of food on his plate – it may seem overwhelming to him. Also, get him used to the taste of vegetables by mixing them up with food that you know he likes.
Remove his plate after a reasonable time (say, 15 minutes) and warn him in advance when that time limit approaches. This discourages him from wasting time.
He struggles to hold the spoon or fork firmly in his hand. Keep cutlery childfriendly. Your child’s hand is small, so give him a spoon with a handle that is appropriately sized and shaped for those little fingers to grasp. Show him how to grip the handle properly.
He continues to want you to feed him. As his hand control improves, reduce your direct involvement. Encourage him to hold the spoon on his own, even if he asks for your help. The more he manages by himself, the less he’ll need you to help.
