A baby relies on a feeding bottle to get her sustenance, which during infancy is mostly milk and water. Upon reaching toddlerhood beginning at the age of one, a number of transitions are about to experienced by the child, and among these is the transition from feeding bottle to cups or glasses. Transitioning from the bottle to the glass takes time. The child has been accustomed to sucking from a nipple and it is not going to be easy to just jump right into a cup. Here’s how to ease your child into cups.
• The first thing you should do is to buy your child a training cup. A training cup is a small cup that has a handle on each side. This makes it easier for your toddler to hold the cup. On top of the cup is a cover that has a small spout filled with small holes. The spout is the transitional point from nipple to actual cup. There are some training cups that have a diaphragm like device inside that prevents liquids from spilling if it is turned over by the child. Liquid will only come out when she starts trying to suck on the spout.
• You should introduce the training cup during feeding time. Instead of giving your child a bottle filled with juice or water, put the liquid inside the training cup and this is what you give. Assist by raising the cup to her mouth. Your child will initially be confused by what the cup is for but she’ll eventually get it.
• Your child will most often reject the cup. Don’t be discouraged by this. Just put down the cup if your child doesn’t want to drink from the cup. Don’t force her to drink. What you can do is to alternate the cup and the bottle during feeding time. This will allow her to slowly get accustomed to the cup. Your child will slowly come to prefer the cup once she gets used to the harder cup because the cup allows her to drink more liquid each sip compared to sucking liquid out of the bottle.
• Allow your child to get used to the cup. Leave it in front of her so she can hold it and attempt to drink from it on her own. Don’t worry if she drops the cup or causes spills. It’s expected from a toddler to create a mess. Encourage her when she tries to drink on her own.
Photo from supercoolbaby.com