Learning to spoon feed

[Anonymous]

First-time parent here, so please forgive any naivete/etc. I'd like advice on what's worked for teaching your baby/young toddler to use utensils, starting with a spoon. For example, did you start with a certain food, like a thicker cereal, and stick with that for a while. Or change up the foods, but try to keep introducing some spoon feeding during some (each) meal?
And what is best, to first demonstrate to the baby/toddler how to do it, or guide his/her hand? Thanks for any tips here, it's much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

I have no idea. I mean this gently, but you're totally overthinking this. Just jump in and try something. If it doesn't work your baby won't need therapy - just try something else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have no idea. I mean this gently, but you're totally overthinking this. Just jump in and try something. If it doesn't work your baby won't need therapy - just try something else.

OP here - I am probably overthinking, yes, but it is helpful to get input. Thanks for any tips.

[Anonymous]

I just gave him a spoon when I fed him with another spoon. He just started doing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just gave him a spoon when I fed him with another spoon. He just started doing it.

+1

[Anonymous]

I didn't ever teach my child to use a spoon. I waited until he was old enough to figure out how to use it by himself.

[Anonymous]

Just hand him a spoon and he will sort if figure it out. It's really messy for a long time and no actual food gets into the mouth this way for months, but it takes this much practice to figure it out. Mine was using a spoon pretty consistently by 18 months, but much of the food was spilling off the back of the spoon because he would tilt it. By two, he had mastered keeping it flat and even soup and cereal milk was staying on the spoon. Try starting with breakfast and keeping him in his pjs for that meal. For a long time, a meal with a spoon meant a full strip down afterwards and that was less annoying than during a midday meal.

[Anonymous]

OP here - Thanks for the responses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just gave him a spoon when I fed him with another spoon. He just started doing it.

+1

Same. My second picked it up much faster by watching his older brother eat. So if you don't use a spoon in front of him, start!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just gave him a spoon when I fed him with another spoon. He just started doing it.

+1

Same. My second picked it up much faster by watching his older brother eat. So if you don't use a spoon in front of him, start!

Exactly! Parents need to sit down and calmly eat their meals WITH their little children.

[Anonymous]

I never spoon fed but always gave him one for appropriate foods, he picked it up around 12 months and mastered it by 18months

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never spoon fed but always gave him one for appropriate foods, he picked it up around 12 months and mastered it by 18months

Wow - you never spoon fed your baby? That was one of the sweetest times of my life with my "little birds"! I miss it. Now my youngest is 18 months and has to do it himself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just gave him a spoon when I fed him with another spoon. He just started doing it.

+1

[Anonymous]

My 15 month old can kind of eat with a spoon. First I dip the spoon in yogurt or hummus, so it's sticky. Then she can spoon things like veggies, meat, or bread onto the spoon and into her mouth. Sometimes she uses her other hand to put food on the spoon, then shoves the spoon into her mouth.

We're getting there.

[Anonymous]

I used sticky, thicker food. Also, did a lot of it outside. It is messy and food flung from one of those baby spoons can travel far!