Teaching to Use Sippy Cup

T.,
My daughter is one as well and we are trying to get her to drink from a straw. What I was told was to use a straw, and put your finger over the end to keep a little bit of the liquid in there. Then give it to your son to suck the liquid out. There is a drop at the end, so he knows there is something in there, but he will figure out that he needs to suck to get any more. It seems to be working slowly with my daughter, but working nonetheless. Good luck!

Take the insert out of the cup lid so it drips rather then having him suck on it. Just keep in mind it will drip anywhere if it's tipped over.

If you think about it, when he uses his bottle gravity is really working with him to allow him to drink. Normal cups also use gravity to help us drink. Straws are working against gravity and may be confusing to the little guy.

So I would suggest that you get him one of the Avent sippy cups that he holds up in the air to drink instead of one that he has to suck. Avent cups are also the no-leak kind so you won't have to worry about messes (if that's your concern).

I hope that helps.

C.
www.hs-wahm.com

At a year I'd say YOU are rushing him out of babyland bigtime. His oral coordination may not be up to that yet try asking his dr. if he has any suggestions and good luck.

my daughter was the same and they way i trained her to understand that there was something in there that she wanted to drink was by putting it in an old-school sippy cup... one that didn't have the no-spill valve... so that she could access the liquid easily. i started her with water only (for easy clean up purposes) and set her in her high chair. after two weeks or so, she got the hang of it and wasn't even spilling all that much. then when i introduced the no-spill cups with the valve, she was more motivated to figure out how to get whatever was in there into her mouth. she was alright spilling on herself and i was okay with the mess so this process worked for us.

We went from bottle to the sippy cups with the soft rubber/plastic tips. I think it was close enough to a "bottle" feel for him and he took to it alot better then the hard sippy's or straws.

My son didn't take to sippy cup right away either. What worked was the tall cups by Nuby with a soft plastic spout that seems similar to a bottle. Now, at 18 months, he still loves this kind of cup, but is also able to drink out of a regular style sippy cup too. I need to work on the straw, now.

I wouldn't fret that he hasn't figured it out. It took my son a while to learn how to use a sippy cup. He'd never taken a bottle either. I started out using the soft spout cups that he could chew on, figuring he'd get a little out here and there and eventually he'd figure it out. Just keep giving him the cup and he WILL figure it out in time. And don't worry about what others are saying or others' kids are doing. My neighbor's grandson who she watches is a little older and "always" learned to do things sooner. She always brags about how he picks everything up immediately. Great for them. I'm not gonna compete or fret. I know my son's an intelligent little boy who prefers to do things on his own time, so no worries. You neither. He'll get it before you know it. They always do. :o)

At one year I'd say YOU are rushing him to grow up..he's only 1, he still a baby, let him be a baby...he will learn how to use a sippy cup! i seriously wouldnt stress yourself so much over it! when the time is right, he will learn! Dont sweat the small stuff, stop and enjoy your little one!

Hi T.,
Well, every child is a different world. This is just to show you early in his years that he is not like his brother. They are all different and he will get it when he is ready. Don't give up on him, just have some patience. Instead of telling him, show him. Do it with him, one cup for him and one for you. If that doesn't work, just wait for him to get there... we all walk at a different pace. He may not like that concept either; not everyone does. My daughter liked the open/regular cups more than my sons. She would rather drink from a grownup's cup than her own. So don't let it get to you. Remember patience is a virtue and boy are you going to need that in a near future; I know; I'm there! :)

Dear T., All children are different. Some cultures nurse for up to 5 years. I think one year is young to be done with the bottle. Why don't you give him a little more time? He does need the milk. Good wishes, Grandma Mary

I used the Born Free Bottles for my daughter and just switched out the nipple to the sippy spout. Saved me $$$ buying sippy cups and she has no problem because it's a perfect transitional soft spout. She now (13 months) has no problems using any type of sippy cup and just for the record, at 4 months, our Pediatrician encouraged us to introduce sippy cups-slowly. I believe there may be a dental reason, but I don't remember exactly what it was. But he did give a caveat, many babies will refuse to drink milk from a sippy cup because they associate it with a bottle. So, I guess my advice is let your child lead you...they know what they need.

If he likes using a regular cup, let him at it :D Let him experiment in an easy to clean area (maybe in the kitchen) so he can figure out for himself how much he can handle at a time.

My daughter never used a sippy cup or anything like that (no bottles either). When she was a baby she used a cup when I couldn't breastfeed her and dad had to give her her dinner, but by 7 months she wanted to do it herself and was able hold and drink from a cafe au lait bowl and mugs with minimal spillage around her first birthday she had a handle on drinking from sports bottles, but was not able to figure out straws until she was almost 2.

If your son is not coordinated enough to handle a cup, try larger bowls (like small cereal or soup bowls). Also the weight of the container may be difficult to adjust to--I noticed my daughter had A LOT more trouble with light plastic & paper cups. She was fine with regular ceramic or stainless steel cups and even ok with wooden cups, but the plastic ones were way too light and she'd spill them every time ;-/

My son was the same way. We took the anti-spill out and he figured it out. But I'd get sippies that its removable, like gerber.

If you want him to use one of the straw sippy cups, start by using a juice box. Put the straw in his mouth and gently squeeze the juice box until he realizes what should happen... it will almost be like a reflex for him to suck on the straw when the liquid comes out. You could also try a regular straw, dip in in a cup of liquid and put your finger over the top, then put the straw in his mouth and remove your finger... this will give him the idea of what is meant to happen. Remember, he is learning a totally new skill, and it takes a while to get the hang of it... he will get it sooner or later!

Take the stopper out of the sippy cup. Until he gets the hang of drinking from it. It's a different motion than a bottle, and sometimes the stopper makes it too hard. The other thing to try is to use the cup at lunch time - he's not too hungry to take the time to try, and he's not too tired (even if it is nap time) to try. Once he gets it down at lunchtime, work on morning and/or evening.

HTH
L.

Hi T.,
We had the same problem. The sippy cup that finally worked for my son was the "take and toss" by Learning Curve. They are semi-spill-proof. If it gets left upside down on the floor (or couch) you're in trouble. But it is really helpful for teaching little ones to drink from a cup because a little bit of liquid will come out even if they aren't really sucking. Some of them even come with removable handles which was helpful for his little hands.
I also wanted to go with the straw, but that one took a LONG time to teach! Good luck!

My son also really loved a water bottle. We wound up purchasing something called the Spill-Proof Combo Pack made by The Snack Trap company http://www.onestepahead.com/product/osa/442780.html
They are lids that screw onto the tops of water bottles and are spill-proof. They are specifically designed for little ones. They kind of worked for us, but the spout is low and my son wasn't sure what to do with it at first.
What actually worked best for me though was just getting a few different sippy cups with handles (some had straws and some did not) and filling them with water everyday and leaving them in my son's play area. He loved trying them out, but would just chew instead of suck. I didn't give up though and I just kep filling up those cups. One afternoon he picked one up and instead of chewing he started sucking and the rest is sippy cup history. Good luck to you.
Peace,
J.