育兒生活分享: 教孩子自主進食、使用餐具

從家中的寶寶開始學吃副食品開始，媽媽就更忙綠了，要製作副食品、要餵寶寶吃、要收拾善後……..種種的忙綠讓媽媽有時連吃飯都忘記了。辛苦了半天，又遇到寶寶愛吃不吃的、胃口不佳，媽媽真的會想摔鍋鏟! 別著急，本篇就來介紹一些小Tips，讓媽媽和孩子都可以一起享受用餐的歡樂(不如先來一份麥當勞快樂兒童餐，謝謝(moon laugh))

因為幫助寶寶建立用餐好習慣，學習自主進食(BLW: Baby Led Weaning) 不只能讓媽媽輕鬆很多，對孩子的成長、自理能力的養成也很好。那麼，要怎麼知道寶寶準備好可以自己吃飯了呢?

◆ 寶寶想要用伸手「抓」食物的時候
◆ 餵副食品時，寶寶想「搶」媽媽手中的餐具
◆ 可以自己坐穩，有「咀嚼」能力
◆ 當湯匙中的食物快掉下來時，寶寶會主動想去「舔」湯匙

這些訊號都告訴我們寶寶準備好了，我們快開始吃飯吧!

 

◆ 第一步: 同桌吃飯，寶寶和爸爸媽媽用餐時間一致

從寶寶吃副食品開始，最好就坐在自己的餐椅上乖乖吃飯。最好不要一邊玩大人一邊餵食，養成吃飯時專心用餐的習慣。定時的作息讓寶寶學習生活規律，透過同桌進食寶寶也可觀察爸媽用餐方式、學習使用餐具。

◆ 美好歡樂又優雅的用餐氣氛
讓寶寶覺得吃飯進食是一件很快樂、愉悅的事。爸媽吃飯的時候可以配合「演很大」，對著盤裡的食物大聲地讚嘆 「好好吃喔!，我等不及要吃了」一邊做出好美味的表情，吸引寶寶對食物的好奇心，引發食慾。

◆ 為寶寶準備合適不易散開、好入口的食物
在初初學吃飯的時候，家長可為寶寶準備容易入口，軟硬適中的食物，比如大小適中的香蕉塊、綠花椰菜、藍莓、小塊的南瓜、地瓜、紅蘿蔔、吐司等都是很好的Finger food, 用手抓來吃也不會弄得黏呼呼的，而使用餐具時也容易插入好掌握。在這裡推薦一款好用的食物剪刀， 隨時隨地可將桌上的食物調整成適合寶寶的大小。

◎推薦用具: SNIP Ceramic Food Scissors (3 Colors)

是一款多功能食物剪，陶瓷材質，鋒利好剪且不會生鏽。比傳統的金屬食物剪刀耐磨，最特別的是它不會與食物產生氧化反應、又抗菌衛生、安全無毒；可避免食物交叉感染，呵護嬰幼兒嬌嫩的腸胃。

 

◆ 為寶寶準備合適的用餐工具
人天生是不會使用餐具的，但寶寶看著大人用餐，不知不覺就學會了。若情況允許，最好為孩子準備合適的餐具，因為小小的手並不適合使用大人的餐具，也不安全。在一開始學吃飯時，餐具材質最好防摔、附帶吸盤可吸住桌面(避免寶寶一時興起，打翻或把餐盤當飛碟，食物餐具滿天飛的慘況XD)

◎推薦用具1. Little Foodie 天然聚乳酸兒童學習餐具 小食客六入組

這是一款很好學習吃飯的入門款餐具，材質完全安全無毒、環境友善也防摔。
有邊緣稍高的大餐盤(食物較不易撒出)，寬口徑內壁略帶直角設計的麥片碗(含矽膠蓋)，非常方便寶寶舀取各類食物。碗、盤底部都有通用吸盤。還有附水杯和myfirst叉匙組，是專門為長牙中的寶寶設計的餐具，湯匙叉子大小適中。不管叉食物吃cereal、喝粥都很順手。

◎推薦用具2
MINIWARE Healthy Meal Set 聰明分隔餐盤組 (100%矽膠材質安全無毒又可冷凍，微波超方便)

在寶寶學吃飯的時候，除了食材健康外，色彩繽紛、擺盤漂亮的餐點也能引發寶寶的食慾。這款顏色粉嫩的分隔盤，除了讓食物看起來更好吃外，也讓寶寶對於所吃的食物看得更清楚，因為這個階段的寶寶可是視覺動物呢，漂亮的食物更會乖乖吃光光吧，呵。

 

◆ 設計優良的叉匙組、學習筷讓進食事半功倍
接下來，我們來看一下幾款幼兒專用的叉匙、學習筷。設計良好的叉匙組、學習筷，會幫助寶寶在進食時更輕鬆愉快、一口接一口停不下來喔!

◎推薦好用叉匙組1. SKATER Toddler Learning Spoon & Fork Set 幼兒學習餐具匙叉組

在剛開始學習自己吃飯的時候，建議可以先從塑膠材質的插匙開始，避免刮傷嬌嫩的口腔，這款設計優良的Skater叉匙組，造型可愛，色彩分明。叉持握把除了有防滑設計，特殊的彎曲弧度也讓寶寶可輕鬆握住。小巧的設計，只能拿起少量食物，巧妙避免噎到的危險。

◎推薦好用叉匙組2: EDISON Fork & Spoon Set 不鏽鋼叉+匙組

在寶寶對自主進食比較熟練後，不妨考慮使用不銹鋼材質的叉匙組。這款超可愛米老鼠叉匙組，不僅造型吸睛，設計更是貼心。首先它的湯匙角度是貼近圓弧四角形，不僅不會刮傷舌頭，嬰幼兒在吃優格，布丁、果凍等任何食物都可以貼住碗把食物吃得很乾淨，小小年紀也要學習不浪費，呵呵! 叉子方面，他特殊的溝槽設計讓吃麵不滑落。叉匙握把防滑的特殊弧度好抓握，讓小孩進食成就感滿分。若想攜帶外出，也可選擇另一款有含盒子的。

◎推薦好用叉匙組3: EDISON Training Chopsticks with Carrying Case 學習筷組

從幼兒兩歲左右開始，除了單純使用叉子，也可以開始練習用學習筷夾取食物。這款Edison 學習筷組用孩子最喜歡的米奇、米妮陪伴他們學習用筷子。筷子上的三個指環圈幫孩子找到手指的固定位置，筷子上的支架方便沒有經驗的幼兒打開和關閉筷子；前端的防滑設計讓夾取食物不掉落。最方便的地方是這款學習筷直接附了盒子，蓋上就能帶著可愛的米老鼠一起外出用餐啦!

◎推薦好用叉匙碗組4: SKATER巧虎餐碗、學習碗、兒童筷

最後，巧虎迷看過來，這套輕巧防摔、材質安全、顏色繽紛可愛的巧虎餐碗、學習碗、兒童筷，為用餐增添趣味，也讓孩子每天都更期待吃飯。其中學習碗盤中的傾斜設計讓食物不易掉落好貼心。兒童筷適合三至十歲的孩童，筷子前端的凹紋設計讓食物更好夾，更好掌握!

孩子你再也不用擔心夾不到喜歡的食物而被大家吃光光了XD

對於寶寶來說，學習自己吃飯是他們探索世界的一大步；從拿湯匙放到口中這個步驟，寶寶練習了用手拿、抓、握以及吞嚥、咀嚼的能力。這些學習過程對寶寶的腦部刺激，語文發展都很有幫助。

爸爸媽媽可以多鼓勵和誇獎孩子，讓他們覺得吃飯是一件好玩有趣的事；越吃越好、越吃越多，變的頭好壯壯。孩子們，準備好你的學習碗，小餐具，我們一起大口吃飯吧。

 

How to develop table etiquette for your toddlers?

As soon as toddlers begin to eat solid food, mothers become increasingly busy; we mothers have to make solid food, feed the toddlers, and clean up afterward… All these tasks force us to skip our meals sometimes. After working hard for half a day, to be met with picky eaters with poor appetite, we mothers can get really stressed! But don’t worry, in today’s blog, we will introduce a few tips to help you and your toddlers enjoy a meal peacefully
together (as simple as if you just give your kid a McDonald happy meal).

Establishing good table etiquette for your kids and promoting BLW (baby led weaning) are important to not only give more free time to the mothers, but also to promote growth and self-care ability. How would we know our toddlers are ready to start eating by themselves?

◆ When they start reaching out to grab the food
◆ When they try to take the feeding utensils from their mothers
◆ When they can sit patently while chewing
◆ As soon as the food in the spoon is almost eaten, they actively try to finish swallowing the rest of the food

These signals will tell us our toddlers are ready to begin training.

◆ Step one: Eating on the same table together at the same time
As soon as the toddlers start eating solid food, it is recommended they sit in their own seat while eating. It is best not to play with adults around while being fed; this way they can learn to focus on eating. Having a regular eating period while eating together with the parents will help toddlers observing their parents’ eating behavior and their use of the utensils.

◆ Having an enjoyable and quiet dining atmosphere
It is important to make toddlers feel that eating is an enjoyable experience. Parents should act in a way to promote happiness and eagerness in finishing delicious food, allowing the toddlers to increase their appetite.

◆ Prepare food that is easy to shape and consume
When toddlers just start to eat solid food, parents should prepare food that is easier to swallow and soft to chew, such as banana slice, steamed broccoli, blueberry, pumpkin, sweet potato, cooked carrot, and toasts. These finger foods are great as they are not making things sticky and they are easy to handle using utensils. Below we recommend a very useful kitchen scissors to shape the food to the right size for your toddlers.

◎ Recommendation: SNIP Ceramic Food Scissors (3 Colors) is a multi-purpose food scissors.
Made with ceramic material, the scissors are sharp, easy to cut and will not rust. Compared to traditional metallic scissors, these scissors will last longer and will not cause oxidation with food, making it resistant to bacteria and safe from another chemical. By preventing the food from cross-contamination, we can protect our toddlers’ digestive system.

◆ Prepare proper dining ware for the toddlers
Most toddlers don’t naturally start using dining ware right away, they observe their parents and eventually learn to mimic their parents’ movement and become adapt in using the dining ware. If possible, it is best to have the right dining ware for them, as their tiny hands may not grab adult’s dining ware right away, which may injure or frustrate them in the process. When first selecting the right dining ware, you should keep in mind that the dining ware needs to be durable as it will get dropped fairly often, and should have suction cups to make sure they
remain on the table surface (as toddlers become excited, they may forget and accidently flip things over if the dining wares are not secured properly).

 

◎ 1st Dining ware Recommendation: Little Foodie Natural PLA-based Children Learning Dining ware Set (set of six individual items)
This is a very good entry level learning dining ware set for your toddler. Its material is safe from chemicals, environmentally friendly, and durable. With a wide opening for the eating bowl, food will not easily fall to the side. The side wall is also perpendicular to surface, allowing toddlers to easily scoop the food into their spoon. The toddler plates and bowls all include suction cup to stick to the surface. It also comes with drinking cup and a fork/spoon set, designed for teething toddlers. Spoon and fork are perfectly fit for toddlers, allowing them to eat finger food, cereal or porridge with ease.

◎ 2nd Dining ware Recommendation: Miniware Healthy Meal Set (100% PLA material: safe, freezer-friendly and microware-friendly)

When toddlers start eating solid food, not only does food needs to be healthy, they also need to be colorful and placed beautifully to stimulate the toddlers’ appetite. Having a colorful dining ware set will make food look more appetizing, while toddlers can visually distinguish the food, allowing them to concentrate eating the food.

◆  Pair with fork/spoon set and learning chopsticks to make the eating experience even better
Next, let’s take a look at a few utensils such as fork/spoon set and learning chopsticks. Having a great design will help toddlers with consuming the food with ease, one bit at a time!

◎ 1st Utensil Recommendation: Skater Toddler Learning Spoon and Fork Set

When first learning to use fork and spoon, it is recommended to use silicon-based material to prevent damaging the little mouth. For design such as Skater fork/spoon set, its design is cute and colorful. Handle should be anti-slip with the right curvature to allow toddlers to hold tirelessly. These delicate designs also limit the amount of food to prevent choking hazard.

◎ 2nd Utensil Recommendation: EDISON Fork and Spoon Set

After toddlers become used to eating food themselves, we can consider a stainless-steel fork and spoon set. This Mickey Mouse design utensils have attractive shape and practical use. Its spoon is rounded to a trapezoid shape to ensure it will not scratch the tongue, perfect for yogurt and pudding also as it will cleanly move through the surface, allowing toddlers to eat cleanly without any waste. On the fork side, it is designed to make it hard for noodle to slip off, allowing toddlers to enjoy without fail.

◎ 3rd Utensil Recommendation: EDISON Training Chopsticks with Carry Case

Starting around two-year-old, toddlers should start learning how to use chopsticks. This Edison training chopsticks has their favorite Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse to accompany them. The chopsticks have finger rings to help toddlers with the correct handling posture, allowing them to open and close with ease. The anti-slip design at the tip also allows toddlers to hold the food. The additional carry case will let you take Mickey Mouse with you and toddlers while eating outside!

◎ 4th Utensil Recommendation: Skater Shimajiro Cartoon dining bowl and training chopsticks set

Finally, Shimajiro fans, come take a look at this utensil set. It is light and durable, with eco-friendly material and colorful Shimajiro design for the bowl and chopsticks. Not only will it be fun, the design is practical to allow food to be grabbed by the chopsticks while using the bowl. The children’s chopsticks are recommended for three- to ten-year-old, as its tip design will allow ease for picking food, while the handle is easy to grab. There are no doubt children will enjoy eating their food while holding these chopsticks.

From the toddlers’ point of view, having the ability to eat on their own is their first step into exploring the world; from the time they hold their spoon to their mouth, to practice grabbing, chewing and swallowing the food, these experiences will trigger their brains into growing healthy, allowing to develop self-reliance skill necessary in the community.

Parents, don’t forget to encourage your toddlers to make them appreciate the food they are eating: The more they like to eat, the more they will eat, and the stronger they will get. Kids, prepare your training dining ware and utensils, let’s eat with excitement.