FEEDING one’s child during the infant stage can be a daunting task as even though the process is less messy, it can be quite time-consuming and a slightly challenging given the child’s likes or dislikes with certain foods.
Some parents, however, have opted to let the child feed themselves to not only instill independence during mealtimes, but also develop their motor skills at an earlier stage and ability to self-regulate their food intake.
A mother has shared how her one year old daughter has learned to feed herself after being trained at a mere six months old.
In a TikTok video by @babyraieessa, it is shown that her child, Raisha, eating with her hands “messily” at six months old right up to learning to eat using cutleries as her age progressed.
“People have told me that if you let your child eat by themselves, they take too long and will not know when to stop.
“From the time Raisha was six months old, I have never once fed her unless she was sick or asked me herself to feed her.
“Even when dining out, I let her eat by herself as we can all eat at once instead of taking turns (to feed her). Alhamdulillah until today, I do not regret training her to feed herself,” she said in her video.
Others, unfortunately, did look down on Raisha’s mother’s part of raising her, accusing her of being “lazy” for making her baby eat by herself and even compared Raisha’s eating to that of a chicken.
Despite receiving criticism, Raisa’s mother’s efforts finally paid off in the long run to the point where Raisha can take care of herself during mealtimes at her pre-school, making it easier for the teachers to handle her.
Netizens have commended Raisha’s mother for teaching her child on feeding herself during meals and some have said that they are teaching their children independence at an early age through light chores.
There is no right or wrong way when it comes to parenting, especially when the parents are encouraging the child to become more independent.
