Is it OK for my 4 year old to still use a sippy cup?

[Cookie0508]

My son is 4 and autistic, we also have a toddler in the house. They both use 360 cups. I know we're supposed to be teaching them to use open cups at this age and he can do it although he prefers his 360 cup. But practicality wise non spill cups around the house are so much better and safer as the little one will grab the older one's cups. Am I a bad parent for letting my 4 year old continue to use baby cups? Are there any better non spill cups people would recommend for a 4 year old?

I don’t know much about asd myself but knowing your son’s situation I myself wouldn’t judge you.

I hear the next best step up are straw cups if you’re not quite ready for open cups. We are teaching our two year old to use straw cups. They are a little bit more messy but if they spill there is an opportunity to catch it before it becomes a full on disaster.

We use these cups.

@VentiPumpkinSpiceLatte oh thanks for this I'll have a look into straw cups.

My take on these things are you pick your battles, if it makes everyone’s lives easier and you all happier and you’re okay with it - then do it. It’s what works for your family.

Thank you @Colourfulponderings <3

What I found good is a small beaker and a plastic tray. Then there's not much capacity (although refills are a bit tedious) and the tray collects any spillage. Which is especially good for milk because it's a pain to clean up.

The tray is also good for creating a "zone" for eating.

My 6 and 8 year old still have their supper milk in baby cups to avoid spillages!

Totally agree

can recommend Camelbak Eddy bottles too :) lots of fun designs for him to choose.

you can by replace valves/straws - and the bottles are robust

My 4.5 year old is autistic, age 4 he just picked up a normal cup and started drinking having always used a bottle. They just do it in their own time. Just leave different options around

My friends child would only drink from a baby bottle until he was around 5/6. He has ASD. We found these bottles online. It has a straw, but the bear is squeezable aswell so its not too much of a change as the water can easily rise up, but introducing the straw is good.

A sippy bottle might be good if he's wanting something a bit more grown up. Most adults are drinking from some form of sippy cup/bottle these days, so I wouldn't worry!

I think it would be madness to let two small children carry open cups around the house. I let mine use bottles with a lid for water if they want to take it away from the kitchen. They have open cups (plastic) when they have water with their meals, maybe this is something you could start if you want them to learn to use them competently. We do have plenty of spills, but its just a bit of water so easily dealt with.

My 5.5 year old still uses a tommee tippee bottle ! It’s fine if a child has additional needs as sometimes you just need to get fluids in regardless of whether that’s via a bottle, beaker or cup

My 5 year old has her milk before bed in one of those cups. She's NT. she just likes them. I don't see the harm personally.

Yes, no problem at all I've seen 4-5 year olds with dummy's in their mouth.

Thanks everyone for your responses! I definitely feel better now.

Thanks for the straw bottle suggestions, I will definitely look into those as his current cup is getting very chewed anyway!

@00100001 Thanks, I actually bought one of those but he refused to use it so I use it myself now 😄