How to Teach Baby to Use a Spoon

When a baby is allowed to practice feeding themselves, they typically use their fingers and ignore utensils for a while. This is normal (eating with utensils is challenging!) but it doesn’t mean they can’t start learning. Start with a spoon, and try these tips from our pediatric pros.  

When to Teach Baby to Use A Spoon

You can wait to offer utensils until baby has had a bit of experience with solid food, or you can offer spoons right away if you prefer. There is no need to rush the transition. In fact, there are many benefits to letting baby decide how to put food in their mouth. Baby may choose to use their hands or practice with spoons, and either choice helps the child learn to self-feed. Rather than enforcing spoons over fingers, offer plenty of opportunities for baby to explore food as you eat alongside them to model how utensils work. This eventually leads to utensil use, although it takes months of practice. Accurate and consistent use of a spoon typically happens between 18 and 24 months of age… and it usually takes even longer for a child to learn how to eat with forks and other utensils. It is also not at all uncommon to see children continue to use their hands for more challenging-to-hold foods until 5 or 6 years old.

How to Teach Baby to Self-Feed with A Spoon

It takes time for babies to learn how to coordinate the arms, hands, and eyes to accurately feed themselves with spoons. Here’s what you can do to help them develop this skill. 

Babies learn how to eat by watching you, so scoop some food (from baby’s bowl or yours) and show baby how you bring it to your mouth to take a bite. Move slowly so baby can you watch what you do, and repeat this a few times. Every time baby watches you, their mirror neurons are firing and gathering information so they can try to mimic you.

Offer the spoon, and let baby grab it, hold it, play with it, and maybe even practice putting it in their mouth if they can figure it out. Expect mistakes and imperfection, especially for the first few months. Baby will drop the spoon. Food will fall off the spoon. The wrong end will make its way into the mouth. This is normal and part of learning how spoons work. 

Learning to scoop food successfully with a spoon takes lots of practice over time. To help baby figure it out, dip a spoon in a soft, scoopable food (such as greek yogurt, lentil dal, mashed vegetables, or porridge) then place the spoon in front of baby, with the handle facing them, and let them try to pick up the spoon on their own. If you like, you can dip both ends of the spoon in the food so baby tastes the food regardless of which end makes its way into the mouth. If baby struggles to pick up the utensil, hold it in the air in front of them within their reach, then wait. Once they grab the spoon, let go. Show baby how to put the spoon back in the bowl (and you can even use a funny word as you replace it like “boink”), which coats it in more food and starts to teach baby how scooping works. 

If baby successfully holds the spoon, but needs a little guidance that the spoon goes into the mouth, make a game out of it to help them learn how it’s done. Open your mouth wide and say, “Ahh!” as you move in the direction of baby’s spoon. Babies often smile and enjoy this connection, and it helps them understand that the spoon with food goes into the mouth. You can then take your own spoon and bring to your mouth, encouraging baby to do the same as they mimic you with their own spoon. 

Outside of mealtime, build fine motor skills with games that use spoons. Scoop water at bathtime. Stir blocks or toys in a bowl. Bang drums with spoons. Use spoons to dig. Stack spoons. Let baby take spoons out and put them away in a box or bowl. These games help baby practice using their fingers and hands which will strengthen the muscles and coordination they need to use spoons at mealtime. 

The more a baby feels pressured, the more they will resist, especially as they grow. Be patient with utensils at mealtime. While it can be incredibly frustrating to watch baby eat with their hands when you want them to eat with their fingers, trust that this is temporary, and normal for their developmental stage! Feign indifference to unwanted behaviors at the table, and keep modeling how to eat with spoons. Baby will eventually join you.

Can I hold the spoon for baby? 

If you prefer to control the spoon, responsive spoon feeding is the way to go. Here’s how it works: 

This way, baby decides when to lean in and take a bite, which helps build positive associations with solid food. As you go, remember: babies are naturally curious and they like to explore with their hands. It’s helpful to encourage this exploration by letting them grab the spoon if they reach for it, especially with older babies. You can also let them grab your hand while holding the spoon to bring it to their mouth to practice this movement. As they grow, babies seek more control with food. Wrestling to keep ahold of the spoon while baby tries to hold it causes frustration—for both you and baby. Also, if baby is used to being fed without reaching for the spoon, this can sometimes result in baby having difficulty understanding they can reach to bring the spoon to their own mouth later on despite months of “practice.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Need help transitioning from spoons to fingers? Check out our course, Purees to Finger Food.

Written By

K. Grenawitzke, OTD, OTR/L, SCFES, IBCLC. Pediatric Feeding/Swallowing Specialist

M. Suarez, MS, OTR/L, SWC, CLEC. Pediatric Feeding/Swallowing Specialist

K. Rappaport, OTR/L, MS, SCFES, IBCLC. Pediatric Feeding/Swallowing Specialist