using a knife and fork - when and how?

[imaginaryfriend]

I feel quite remiss but dd (6) still doesn't know how to use a knife when she eats. She always eats with a fork unless it's something like a sandwich / pizza but I don't know how to get her to start using a knife to any effect.

At the moment she uses her fork in her right hand so I guess the trick is to get her fork into her left hand, then the knife in the right.

I'm sure it's obvious. Any advice?

umm, just don't chop her food up?

It will come. My son found cultery difficult until a few months ago, but something just clicked. He now uses a knife and fork beautifully.

Maybe she doesn't yet have the strength in her fingers to apply enough pressure. Prehaps if you place the knife and fork in the right hands and help her by holding the knife she will get the idea.

I had to say countless times to him "Fork in your left hand, knife in your right."

I've tried that but she then just picks up larger parts on her fork and bites chunks off. She does that with things like roast potatoes, slices of chicken, etc. I don't chop up very much of what she eats at all actually. With something like lasagne, she kind of uses the side of the fork to make parts of the pasta sheets smaller, then forks it in. She also usually uses her finger to push things onto the fork rather than a knife.

Should I have got her to use a knife much earlier? Do I get her to start using her fork in her left hand instead?

What age did you start RT? And what age did he grasp it? I eat back to front - fork in right, knife in left, although I'm not left-handed.

do you give her a knife, has she ever asked for one
I would stop cutting up her food (am assuming that you do) and give her a knife.
presumably she will then ask - you show her.
help her if she needs it, but encourage her to do it herself.

I always give her a knife but she never uses it. See below for my cutting up food practises! I've been thinking of all the things we eat and I'm pretty certain that I don't cut up anything any more.

NO advice, was hoping for some myself on how to encourage DS (4.3) to use cutlery more often as he tends to eat just about everything with his fingers despite being given cutlery.

I think there is little point in thinking what you should have done. Its not the end of the world and I am sure she will learn to use a knife and fork properly. What you need is persistance and the belief she will get there eventually.

Give her lots of praise for attempting to use the knife properly or even a low level bribe like a bit more of a food she likes.

Get her to cut up something with the knife and fork that easy like a soft carrot. My son sometimes finds it hard to cut up meat because of the strength in the fingers required. (He does try hard and is really determined)

But what about the swapping hands thing? When I try to get her to hold her fork in her left hand and her knife in her right she's a total mess as she can't use her fork in her left hand without food going everywhere.

sorry missed that post IF.
re the otehr hand thing, both my ex-H and ex-FIL eat the other way round despite not being left-handed. I don't see that as a problem.
RT has good tips.

I started when my son was about four or five, but he didn't really grasp using a knife and fork properly until he was 6 years and 10 months.

We had a different set of problems. He used to hold his food with his fingers and cut it with the knife. I had battles with him because he wanted to use his fingers.

In the end I got quite strict with him at about six years and nine months old. Ie. he got told off if he used his fingers unless he had permission to eat with his fingers.

There is a huge difference between a newly six year old and a nearly seven year old in development. It will come.

dd went through a phase where she used to pick the food up in her fingers, put it on her fork, then eat it! That's stopped thankfully. Maybe I'll let her keep her fork in her right hand then and try to think of things she has to cut rather than spear and eat off her fork. Sigh ...

Oh blimey DS does that. 'Eat with your fork DS' - picks up pasta shell, balances on fork, raises to mouth, drops pasta shell, picks it up with fingers and rams it in mouth....