2.5 year old and use of utensils?

daniella2727

Does your 2/2.5 year old eat well with utensils? My girl is very bright and well beyond many of the listed milestones she should reach at her age. She does know how to use a spoon and fork and they are offered to her at every meal but she still typically defers to using her hands - even for things like eating cereal. I wanted to know if other mom's are in the same boat as me or not and if there is anything I should do to encourage her to use her utensils or if this is just a phase she will naturally grow out of?

[Deleted User]

DS has primarily used utensils for awhile now but every now and then he'll still use his fingers (like when he eats pancakes he does some bites with a fork and others with his fingers). I would just keep encouraging the utensils, I'm sure she will start using them more often sooner than later.

blu-eyedwife

My 2 year old does a mixture of both.  Things like soup he obviously uses a spoon and not his hands, but for things like cereal he goes back and forth between spoon and picking out big pieces (we do cornflakes a lot) with his fingers. The same holds true with fork items - sometimes he'll use a fork, sometimes he picks the food up with his fingers.

JMU_Bride09

DS1 usually uses his fork and spoon but will occasionally use his fingers. I would just keep encouraging her to use the utensils whenever she uses her fingers.

ashiscute

Mine does a mixture of both.  She does much better with spoons than forks.  I think the spoon is faster at getting foods to her mouth than the fork so she'll ditch the fork and use her hands at times.  I remind her of her fork but don't make a big deal of it.  She'll get better and she eats a lot of foods that you don't use utensils for anyway.  Not a big deal IMO.

kcisthebombdotcom

Could she maybe have some fine motor weakness? Can she draw a circle and cross? String beads? You might find some fine motor play activities may help with utensil use.

dairygirl19

It's pretty normal. Kids are naturally inclined to eat with their hands because it's faster and easier.

Can mine use utensils? Yes.

Does she always? Ha. No.

Do I care? Not really. As long as she' s not making a mess I'm just happy she eats.

xMissLissx

My DS will do both. As long as he eats I don't care lol.

One other thing, kc_13, 2.5 year olds are not expected to draw a circle or cross at this age.

rayandbrit

I can barely get my 4yo to use utensils. It's never bothered me, as long as they're eating I'm happy! 

rae_dylanzmom

Mixture of both in our house. What he seems to be working on is how to keep the fork flat. A work in progress, for sure.

He loves putting food on toast/crackers and eating that way, which is probably because I do it a lot. Sort of a middle ground between fingers and utensils. 

BabyBoyNYC

29 months (almost) and still likes to use his hands but will use his fork for things he can and his spoon for things he can (like yogurt or pudding) I got the little newsletter from the bump at 28 months and it said it was completely normal for them to still use their fingers.

mn27mommy

daniella2727 said:

Does your 2/2.5 year old eat well with utensils? My girl is very bright and well beyond many of the listed milestones she should reach at her age. She does know how to use a spoon and fork and they are offered to her at every meal but she still typically defers to using her hands - even for things like eating cereal. I wanted to know if other mom's are in the same boat as me or not and if there is anything I should do to encourage her to use her utensils or if this is just a phase she will naturally grow out of?

Are you referring to my son??

He does the exact same thing, sometimes he'll use them others he just gives up because it is faster to eat with his hands. He's bright and knows how to do it, I think it depends on how hungry he is. He's been using them more often now, so I'm personally just going to keep including them with every meal and encourage he use them but not reprimand if he doesn't.

aglenn

rayandbrit said:

I can barely get my 4yo to use utensils. It's never bothered me, as long as they're eating I'm happy! 

This!  It drives DH crazy but even our older one does not use utensils well (at home anyway; she apparently does use them at day care).  She is more than capable but chooses not to do it.  Whatever, I figure she will eventually get over this.

Chuck1906

My son just turned 2 last month and has been using a spoon and fork for almost a year now. As a matter of fact, he hates getting his hands dirty although if he is eating something like salad, he tends to use his hands but after every couple bites, he is asking for a napkin to wipe his hands clean! LOL! 

funchicken

Yes, DD2 uses utensils very well.  If I forget to give them to her, she asks for them.  My older DD had a lot more trouble, and she does have a fine motor delay.  I'm not saying your child does.  You have to look a their skills as a whole.  I think being the second child helps, too--she ditched bibs and the high chair really early because she wanted to be like her big sister

amom333

The original post sounds just like my daughter.  She can definitely use utensils and was for a while but has lately regressed to wanting to use her hands.  As long as she finds a way to feed herself, though, we don't make a big deal out of it.  Some say it may be because of the impending arrival of her sibling though I think she may be using it as an excuse for her not to eat certain foods (like rice, which is hard to pick up) and for her to eat her veggies (which have weirdly always been her favorite - and they're much easier to pick up).  By picking up her food with her fingers, she's always making sure to get exactly what she wants rather than scooping up some food she doesn't want with a spoon.