Your Child is Ready to Learn Some Self-Dependent Skills

This is the age when the child enters his self-dependent phase. He should now be able to use all his senses to perform a variety of activities. He can eat food using his hands and can even pour water in a glass. But can he use all the utensils to eat food?

What you need to know

It is your responsibility to teach your kid how to handle a spoon, fork and a knife so that he can grow self-dependent at the dining table. You can demonstrate the same to him by holding his hand from the top while he holds the spoon to ensure he doesn't lose his grip.

Most kids, by the time they are 4 years old, can handle a spoon but a fork and knife can be tough. Teach the child the exact knife-fork combination to cut food and then pick it up with a fork. This must be practiced on a regular basis until the child learns. Let him try it on his own initially. You can correct him with the hand positioning if he goes wrong. Always be there when he practices in order to maintain safety.