When Do Toddlers Begin Using Utensils for Eating?

I introduced a spoon at just under year. I gave my son a Take n Toss spoon (cheap, dishwasher safe, and BPA-FREE) and helped him feed himself. I held it in his hand the right way to show him how you are supposed to hold a spoon and would scoop the food from the bowl to his mouth. I smiled a lot and said in a sing-song voice "scooooop!" when I scooped and while he giggled, I would put it in his mouth. He loved this game! HTH!

We let my son start experimenting with spoons around 9 months, and by 18 months he was quite proficient with both spoons and forks. The only suggestion I have is to let your daughter have lots of practice and exposure and she'll get the hang of it. Good luck!

She'll mostly play with it for a while. My son used to keep the spoon in one hand, pick up his food with the other, put it in the spoon, then eat from the spoon! It was hilarious to watch!

My daughter will be one next week. She likes to play with the spoons. If I put food on the spoon for her, she will take the spoon from me and eat normally. She just can't scoop the food up yet. Very cute!

per my mom and our pediatrician...we purchased boon utensils for our 11 month old a month ago. we give her oatmeal in a boon bowl (any bowl with a suction cup will do) and let her go to town. i think she gets about 1/4 of the meal in...but, it's a good start. full time use of them begins between 18 months and 2 years old.

Good Morning Jody, If you have the plastic baby spoons you might of used earlier let your little princess have them at meal time. You could let her chase the cheerios around her bowl (without milk if you want) If she likes marshmallows put a few of the miniatures in a bowl and help her try to pick them up with her spoon.
Little people don't have the dexterity yet to control how they use them. At meal time just give her a little spoon and see how she does with it. She might throw it down and dig in with her fingers for a while yet. Nothing Wrong with that either.

Corbin 4, still holds his spoon & fork in a fist grip, his dad gets on him wanting him to hold it in the normal position DUH, well he doesn't have that agility as yet to do it. So all the fussin isn't going to make them hold it right quicker....lol

Just practice with your Princess Jody, she will do well in her own time.
God Bless you and your family
K. Nana of 5
Happy Hallo-Weenie

Why did the vampire go to the orthodontist?
- To improve his bite.

What do you get when you cross a vampire and a snowman?
- Frostbite.

Why do witches use brooms to fly on?
- Because vacuum cleaners are too heavy.

We bought our daughter cheap plastic utensils in the baby section of Walmart and she loved them, tried using them from the time she was one, but sometimes got in one bite to every 3-4 i got in her. :-) Now she's almost 3 and has little metal utensils we got in the dollar bin at target, they have plastic handles, and she loves feeling like she has big girl forks and stuff. Good luck! Feeding toddlers can be very aggrivating and funny.

as soon as my little ones begin to use a high chair I start giving themkid untensils. The best ones I've found are the "disposable" ones they sell in the same aisles as the sippy cups. I reuse them, and they are dishwasher safe, etc. butthey are fat plastic, which I like. Once the kids actually seem to want to use a fork to pierce something though I switch them to a toddler sized fork with metal prongs that will actually go into food easily. My 3 year old still uses these utensils so they were a good investment and my 1 yearold uses both the fat plastic and the metal atthis point depending on what he's eating.

anytime! let her play with them while you feed her...if you think she's interested, put a little food on the end of a spoon and put it in her mouth, show her they're not just toys...i have a 3 year old boy, so he's not terribly interested - even now i have to ask him repeatedly, fingers are just so much more convenient! lots of practice and be a good example. she'll get it...i don't think it's one of those things that will hurt her if you start too soon ;) happy halloween!

well we started giving them to our daughter around her 1st birthday. She is now 20 months and doesn't do to bad with them. the more practice they are allowed the better and sooner they get with them. sometimes you have to repeatedly help them but they will learn.

Hi Jody, My daughter always liked holding a spoon while if feed her, starting around 6 months, then slowly she would try to put food on it & put in her mouth. Now at 14 months she eats really well with a fork & a spoon, of course she sometimes still is in a hurry & uses her hands. I also think it very's per kid cause my 14 month old does a lot better than my 3 year old!!!

I let my all my babies hold a spoon and play with it after feeding them.Then worked into putting food on it it is a messy process but it will be ok they are learning.When they start feeding themselves fingerfoods is a good time this occurs after or before 6 months-9 months the pincher grasp they will practice but they already have the hand to mouth down packed.Start with a spoon the fork will come later.