Anonymous wrote:
My son with fine motor delays and small hands still used toddler cutlery at that age and transitioned later to full size.

My daughter on the other hand... sigh. My daughter, at 11, eats with her hands.

This caught my attention and made me lol. But also, I fear my 5 year old will be going this direction.

Anonymous wrote:That’s around the age that we transitioned to regular utensils, with them using the salad fork and teaspoon.

+1, around age 3. 4.5 year old is pretty proficient. 8 year old could be but like another PP's kid, he eats with his hands ... sigh.

My kid uses regular spoons, but the smaller of the two that came with our silverware set. She uses smaller kiddie forks, but they are metal and can actually pierce things. She doesn't use a knife yet, but there hasn't really been a need either, so it's not so much that I don't let her but she just doesn't. She's almost 5.

My 4YO uses a metal knife, fork, and spoon at every meal. Now, granted, he uses the knife to play music on his water glass, his spoon for launching projectiles, and his fork for digging under the protective cover to scratch the table.

What does he use to eat? His fingers. Sigh.