Talktools Honey Bear Drinking Cup with 2 Flexible Straws - Includes Instructions - Spill-proof Lid by TalkTools

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If you are attempting to start teaching your child straw drinking on a conventional straw cup, but are unsuccessful consider using the Honey Bear Cup. The following can be referenced as a system for gradual exposure. 1. Initial Presentation: Mini Tip - This is a smaller version of the Probe Tip, designed for smaller mouths (about 2.5 years and under). This age recommendation is not a hard-and-fast rule though - we've seen younger kids use the Probe Tip and older individuals use the Mini Tip. Now, before you tear through your kitchen and trash your sippy cups or worry you’ve irreparably damaged your child, we just want to point out that using a sippy cup will not damage your child and likely have zero noticeable impact. In fact, one of our staff feeding therapists occasionally used sippy cups with both of her kids because she already had them and they were spill-proof. While sippy cups may not be ideal for oral motor skill development, babies are incredibly flexible and resilient.

There are many sippy cups on the market—soft spouts, firm spouts, with handles, or without handles. But, as feeding specialists, we have to reiterate that we don’t love sippy cups and instead recommend you focus on straw cups when on-the-go or in need of a mess-free meal. Why? Sippy cups encourage your baby to use their tongue in a way that is not ideal for cup or straw drinking. Plus, as soon as your baby masters a sippy cup, it’s time to conquer more mature cup skills, which adds an unnecessary step (and expense) to the process.

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Step 1: Using a straw (a standard plastic restaurant straw will do), use your finger to trap a *small* amount of liquid in the bottom. Encourage them to drink from it frequently and monitor the straw’s cleanliness, replacing it if you notice any signs of wear or tear. Kary Rappaport, a Solid Starts feeding specialist, teaches her daughter Lucy, 7 months, how to drink from a straw with the pipette method. Straw trainer method You want to teach your child to drink from a straw, but they seem to be struggling a bit with a regular straw.

So XXT is usually best either for people who have chewed through the XT level already, and/or for anyone who already likes chewing on very hard items - things like legos, hard plastic toys, wooden items, etc. The goal in the 6- to 12-month age range is to practice the skills of cup drinking—not to replace the breast or bottle. Starting open cup practice early (ideally around 6 months of age) allows your baby plenty of low-pressure time to hone cup skills before transitioning off bottles or breastfeeds. If you’ve missed this window and your baby is now 12 months or older, all is not lost! Your 12+-month-old still has time to learn this skill! Which cup should I use for my baby? Quentin, 8 months, reaches for his cup. Giving your baby the chance to reach for the cup before you bring it to their mouth will speed the learning process for independent cup drinking. Baby putting food in cup/splashing

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Usually we recommend going with the softest/standard level by default. Unless someone chews through or causes damage to anything else they chew on (chews through pencils, chews holes in shirts, etc.), in which case the XT level would be longer lasting. Hunger can be motivating. Make sure your baby has at least a bit of hunger motivation at the meal by separating out breast or bottle-feeds from table feeds by at least 60 minutes. If your baby is 9+ months old, you may separate them even more (by 2-3 hours) to see if this helps.

Step 3: When baby accepts the straw in their mouth, take your finger off the top and allow the liquid to pour into their mouth. This usually helps your baby understand to close their lips, and that liquid comes out of the straw. William, 6 months, learns to drink from the ezpz straw cup. I still need a sippy cup. What’s the best sippy cup for my baby?Step 2: Let your baby open their mouth and lean in to accept the straw, then give a little squeeze to the cup, which will express a small amount of the liquid into your baby’s mouth. Most babies will respond by immediately sealing their lips to swallow, which helps them learn to close their lips around the straw. Transitioning from bottles or breastfeeds to solid foods and liquids in a cup (basically eating and drinking like a big kid!) If someone does chew through things, it’s possible they may need the toughest XXT level eventually. XXT is super firm, though, so we don't always recommend getting it right off the bat (some people find it uncomfortable chewing on something that firm). Introducing the Honey Bear Straw Cup to your toddler can be a game-changer in your mealtime routine.