Tons of oral motor exercises for toddlers and kids that can easily and naturally be used in the home. Plus, get a free downloadable PDF!
I’m getting a little bit technical in this post, as I tell you about the powerful, but often unheard of, oral motor exercises. Unless you happen to have a child in feeding or speech therapy, then you’ve probably not heard the term before. It’s very common lingo in both occupational and speech therapy. I’m taking the time to talk about oral motor exercises because using them can absolutely transform how your child eats, if they won’t eat a variety of foods or if your baby/toddler is having a hard time transitioning to table foods.
The problem is that oral motor exercises don’t help in every instance of extreme picky eating or babies that won’t eat. To know if they’re going to be helpful for your child, we’ll need to do some detective work. To begin with, you’ll need to think about what and how your child eats. I think an example might help here, so I’m going to tell you about a little boy, Micheal, that was having difficulty eating. He was 12 months old when his mother came to me for help.
Micheal’s mother desperately told me that he wouldn’t eat foods. Then, she corrected herself, and said, “Well, he tries to eat some foods, but all of the food comes right back out of his mouth.” Aha, it’s an important clue that Micheal was trying to eat and not just flat out refusing (we’ll get to why in a minute). I learned that Micheal was taking all sorts of soft cooked veggies and fruits, putting them into his mouth, seemingly chewing them for a long time, and then they would haphazardly fall out of his mouth.
Micheal would also accept some pureed foods and had done okay eating baby foods, but mostly seemed indifferent to the whole experience.
His mother was stressed.
Confused.
In Micheal’s case, oral motor exercises were a perfect strategy to help him learn to eat better! And, they helped a lot, combined with other strategies for helping babies learn to eat finger foods. Within a few weeks, Micheal was eating 5-7 new foods, and they weren’t falling out of his mouth! (Read more about how to transition baby and toddlers to table foods.)
If Micheal hadn’t received some additional help with his oral motor skills, he might have continued to struggle to eat. His family would have done their best, guessing what to do at each turn. He may have grown into a 1, 2, 3 year old, or older with serious picky eating challenges. At some point, his oral motor skills likely would’ve gotten at least a little better, but many other layers would’ve been added to the picky eating problem, making it hard to unravel.
What could’ve happened is a story I see in front of me all the time.
Of course, Micheal’s story is just one example of how helpful oral motor exercises can be, and they certainly aren’t just for babies or toddlers. Children of all ages may benefit from them.
Before we begin, keep a look out for the Feeding Therapy and oral motor exercises downloadable PDF at the end of the post and you’ll get a bonus: Food Diary Log.
What Does Oral Motor Mean Exactly?
Oral motor refers to how we use the muscles inside of our mouth. This includes the tongue, lips, cheeks, and jaw. They are all parts of our mouth and are tied to tons of muscles, and just like any muscle, it can be strong or weak. Coordinated or not coordinated.
We need our oral motor skills to be able to talk, eat, or drink from a straw. They aren’t something most of us give much thought to, but they are very important.
Signs a Child May Need Oral Motor Exercises
This is where we’ll start our detective work! Below, I’m going to list common signs you might see if your child has either some difficulty coordinating their oral motor skills or underlying weakness. It’s important to note that you’re looking for several signs to be present to point towards your child benefiting from oral motor exercises.
Also, this is not any sort of diagnosis. If you’re concerned about your child’s oral motor skills, I’d highly recommend a feeding therapy evaluation or if your child is under three and you live in the U.S., you may qualify for a free in-home evaluation from your state’s early intervention program.
For the feeding therapists, OT’s, or SLPs, that have to assess feeding, you know it can be hard to find a good screening tool. If that’s the case for you check out The Picky Eating Hierarchy: Screening Tool to Identify Feeding Difficulties and Treatment Plan in our shop.
Here are some red flags that oral motor skills needs some attention:
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- Food falling out of mouth while trying to eat
- Difficulty chewing
- Mashes food with tongue
- Sucks on food instead of chewing
- Will hold food in mouth, sometimes for hours (often referred to as “pocketing food“, there are other reasons children do this, as well)
- Gagging on food after it’s been in mouth (not immediately or at the sight of food, check out this guide on baby gagging)
- Mouth is often in an open position
- Tongue hangs out of mouth
- Difficulty sticking tongue out
- Never chewed on toys or teethers as a baby
- Difficulty learning to eat table and finger foods as a baby and toddler
- Preference for certain texture of food (Crunchy or soft)
- Difficulty drinking from a straw (if over 24 months old)
- Drooling (only consider when combined with other factors on this list, as drooling has many different potential causes. Learn more about when your child is too old to drool here)
How to Use Oral Motor Exercises with Kids
If your child is in feeding or speech therapy, you may see their therapist practice oral motor exercises for a certain amount of repetitions or over a period of time. And, if you’ve been told to follow through on that at home, then please follow the direction of your therapist first.
For many toddlers though, it’s nearly impossible to get them to sit and complete “exercises”. And, for older children, it may start to feel like a chore. If it does, they likely aren’t going to try very hard or they’re going to rush to get through them, not really reaping the full benefit. That’s why I like to use oral motor activities in their play as much as possible.
This is actually pretty easy to do. Once you learn about what the oral motor exercises are below, you can either make a list (or print mine out), gather any simple supplies you might need, and have them on the ready. You may decide to have a basket of these items out for your child to engage with at any time, or maybe to set up a time everyday that you play with the oral motor toys.
I don’t like to call it “exercise” time, unless I have to. Ideally, I like to just use oral motor exercises as part of a routine. For instance, I might find some time I can focus on them after breakfast each day for 10 minutes, where I get down on the floor and be silly with the ideas and toys below. Or, I might try if I had a 15 minute commute after daycare or school (most of the exercises can be done easily in the car). Giving your child the chance to do oral motor exercise everyday or a couple times a week can have a big impact.
Doing these activities with your child and demonstrating is very important, too! Kids that need oral motor exercise are having a hard time using those muscles and they can’t see what they’re doing. Watching you literally helps them see what they need to do. Plus, it’s more fun and motivating. You can also try the activities in front of mirror!
You may work on oral motor exercises for weeks, months, or in some cases, years. You’ll know you don’t need to do them anymore when they’re able to complete them easily and they are able to chew foods well or their speech has significantly improved.
Transforming Oral Motor Exercises for Toddlers and Children
As you look through the list below, you’ll see the exercises organized by the different parts of the oral system: tongue, cheeks, jaw strength, lips. Children may have difficulty or need strengthening in all of the areas or they may need to focus on just one particular muscle.
If you see your child has no problem completing certain groups of these exercises, there’s probably not a weakness there! When they struggle to complete them, that’s usually a sign they need more help in that area. However, some activities aren’t developmentally appropriate at all ages. For instance, a 13 month old isn’t usually capable of blowing bubbles, but a 2 year old is. I will indicate ages next to the exercises.
Lastly, keep in mind, there’s a lot of overlap between the different exercises and the muscles they target.
Affiliate links used below. See our full disclosure.
Tongue Exercises:
Use a vibrating toothbrush to brush teeth (stimulates tongue movement)
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- I like this smaller one for babies and toddlers. Note that vibration can be intense sensory input, if your child refuses, take baby steps to help them get used to the sensation. Never force.
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- Licking popsicles or lollipops outside of the mouth
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- Placing applesauce, yogurt, or pudding on the corners of the mouth and having kids lick off. (Mirrors are helpful if your child struggles with this one.)
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- Click or cluck tongue
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- Sing “La, la, la”
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- Try to touch tongue to tip of nose (it doesn’t matter if they can’t get there, the tongue in that direction is what matters)
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- Blow raspberries
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- Count teeth with tongue
Lip and Cheek Exercises:
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- Blowing air kisses
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- Drinking through a straw (Learn how to teach babies and toddlers to drink from a straw from as early as 9 months old)
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- Experiment with thicker textures like milkshakes and even applesauce to make it more challenging
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- Hold a small carrot stick or other food in between the teeth without using teeth to hold it steady
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- Make silly faces
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- Fish lips (ages 3 and up)
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- Make “O” shape with lips
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- Spread lips far apart
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- Kiss lips
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- Blow fish face, with cheeks puffed out
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- Blow bubbles (20 months plus)
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- Humming
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- Pick a nursery rhyme that your child likes and try humming it together
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- Play a harmonica
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- Smack lips together
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- Blow whistles (easy one’s can be used from about 18 months and older)
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- There are a ton of whistles out there, many are very affordable. These “lip kazoos” are very easy and a great place to start.
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- Other whistles like these blowers are more challenging.
Jaw Exercises:
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- Bite on a vibrating toy.
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- Baby teethers can work if they fit in your child’s mouth.
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- Handheld massagers can even be held to the jaw for a few seconds at a time to stimulate the muscles.
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- These animal jigglers are designed to go inside your child’s mouth and can even be used as utensils. Kids are often motivated to bite on the chewy texture. Therapists love them (I always had one in my therapy bag).
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- For the most intensive vibration, therapists may use a z-vibe. These are very powerful and should be used carefully, making sure you child is comfortable with the sensation. Vibration is very stimulating to the muscles in short bursts of 3-5 seconds, but starts to relax the muscles after that point. Watch for your child’s reactions.
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- Use a mesh bag (found in the baby department) to chew on foods directly on the molars.
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- We want kids to chew directly on their molars, or where they will be, on the back of their gums. Hold (or have them hold) the mesh bag and chew while keeping it in place. I love to put frozen grapes or strawberries in the bag, but use a food you think your child will enjoy!
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- Chew on molars with chewy foods
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- Dried mango strips
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- Beef jerky
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- Licorice
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Some children LOVE oral motor exercises and want to do them all the time. That’s because there is a sensory component to how oral motor exercises feel. The texture, the taste, and the smell. These exercises can be very stimulating. At the same time, some kids will avoid these activities solely because of the sensations they experience. If you think your child falls into either of these camps, then head to Everything You Need to Know About Oral Sensory.
Ideas for Oral Motor Therapy
Sometimes kids need some extra motivation, and these are some bonus ideas that take the oral motor exercises to the next level. Perfect for therapists to use during therapy or parents looking for some more creative ideas. I’m constantly finding new ideas and pinning them on our Pinterest boards.
Here are some of my favorites:
If as a therapist, you need to regularly or occasionally assess a child’s oral motor skills, The Picky Eating Screen Tool in our shop, covers all this and more. It’s invaluable to have on hand!
Want to Print Out a List of These Oral Motor Exercises?
I’m thinking it might be helpful to print a list of the oral motor exercises above! So, I made one for you. You can grab the Feeding Therapy and Oral Motor Exercises Pack here! Plus, I added a Food Diary Bonus to utilize to track any child’s eating! All of these are great to start today!
If you have any questions about oral motor therapy or exercises leave them below in the comments, I’m happy to help!
More on Oral Motor for Kids and Toddlers
Everything Oral Sensory: The Total Guide
The BEST Strategy for Picky Eating
Transitioning Your Baby (or Toddler) to Table Foods
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Alisha Grogan is a licensed occupational therapist and founder of Your Kid’s Table. She has over 19 years experience with expertise in sensory processing and feeding development in babies, toddlers, and children. Alisha also has 3 boys of her own at home. Learn more about her here.
Hi! I’m a worried mom! I feel like I’m a bad mom because I guess I allowed my 6 year old to develop bad eating habits growing up. He used to eat a cheese pizza for dinner, grilled cheese for lunch and pop tart or biscuits for breakfast. I added powdered vitamins and probiotics to his beverages a everyday which he does drink all, but I don’t want to always sneak or hide the food. I want him to love the food he eats including texture. I’ve tried boiling small servings of veggies and roughly blending them for a more chunky texture and he just Gags on those savory mixes and throws them up right away. I boiled jasmine rice with fresh herbs and chicken broth, but he just had the broth and though I’m glad the vitamins are in the broth, I want him to eat the pulp and fibers. So we’re making some progress but still! What should I do? He also has a store bought protein/fiber smoothie everyday. I’m using these healthier options to lessen the servings of the unhealthy meals he has everyday.
Hey Elaine!
That sounds really tough! Try not to beat yourself up about it! So many kids are picky eaters. You’re not alone! We always suggest trying to serve at least 1 preferred food during meals and to use no pressure, positive solutions for foods they haven’t started eating yet. Our free picky eating workshop is a great place for you to start getting some ideas. You can save your seat HERE. Let us know if you have any questions!
Best,
Andrea
Hi, My daughter is 5 years old. she has challenges with eating solid food. She is not interested in having her food. Everyday , her mom feeds her 3-4 times a day. She does not take solid food. so the food is crushed in a blender and fed to her. My daughter does not chew the food, she immediately swallows the food. I am very much worried , she is not asking for food and she does not chew her food before swallowing them. When she is given solid food, she spits them out. Even the rice , if it is not crushed well, she picks them out with her hands. Kindly advise , how to get my daughter eat her food well. Your help and assistance is greatly appreciated. Thank you
Hey Ashok,
Thanks for reaching out! We know it can be really frustrating when our kiddos don’t get the hang of chewing right away. If you have concerns about her safety while feeding, reaching out to her doctor would be helpful We suggest starting off with a dissolvable solid food such as graham crackers or gerber puffs and then modeling quite a bit of what she should be doing. Our free table foods workshop would be a great place to start. It was created with babies/toddlers in mind- but will still be extremely helpful for your daughter I believe! You can save your seat HERE.
Best,
Andrea
Hi,
Im having trouble opening the link for the oral motor exercises. Would you be able to send it to my email? Thanks in advance!
Kind Regards,
Richard
Hey Richard!
Thanks for reaching out. I just sent over the printable of the exercises to you. Let us know if you have any questions!
Best,
Andrea
Hi,
I have an eight year old boy who drools a lot in particular out of one side of his mouth. Nose is quite stuffy a lot of the time as well. Speech therapy hasn’t worked for this so far. Is there anything else I should be looking at?
Stella
Hi Stella! Thanks for reaching out! Drooling can be a common difficulty some children face. It may be related to sinuses, but if you notice it along with eating difficulties, it could be sensory related. (We have more information for that here) You might want to try to bring more sensory awareness to the mouth. One way to do this is through the use of an electric toothbrush. You can use the toothbrush on his teeth and tongue but you can also use it on the inside of his cheeks. This helps give him the extra sensory information he craves and makes his mouth more aware.
Best,
Kalyn
Hello! My son is 22 months old and has went from picky eating to completely shutting off from almost every food! It’s very stressful as I worry that he’s not eating a lot or worrying what I can be doing wrong. He can be so excited for a food but once he puts it in his mouth he’ll spit it all out and get frustrated. Or their be times he’s eating cereal and if one gets on the outside of his lips or on he’ll spit it all out. He was never like this as baby but more so around 18 months I started noticing the less he ate. My question is which certain exercises should I work on with him and how long doing them will I notice a difference in him wanting to try more food? I’m desperate at this point 🙁 I just want my baby healthy and able to enjoy food. Thank you in advance
Hey Natalie,
That can be really tough and of course make us worry when our kiddos stop eating! Since you mentioned that when he gets the food on his lips, he starts to shut down, it might be worth it to check out our article on sensory challenges with feeding, to see if that might be some of what’s going on. You can reach that HERE. If you do think he’s having those challenges, one really helpful suggestion is to focus on teeth brushing 2-3x a days (you can use an electric toothbrush too). That sometimes helps to desensitize the mouth a little bit. I hope that helps get you started!
Best,
Andrea
I’ve tried multiple times to download the PDF – I’ve sent it to a couple of emails I have access to — with no luck.
Hey Mel,
Be sure to check your spam folder! Sometimes it hides out there. I’ve also sent you an email with it as an attachment. I hope that helps!
Best,
Andrea
Hi I was wondering if these exercises could also help with a tongue tie? My toddler as a little lisp, where her tongue goes between her teeth and air escapes from the sides of her mouth. Just wondering if the things listed could possibly help her with that?
Hi Bunny,
Thanks for reaching out! The oral motor exercises will help her gain strength in her tongue and surrounding muscles in her mouth. It will also be helpful in encouraging her to use the full range of motion in her tongue that is possible. The exercises won’t create additional range of motion that is restricted if she has a tie. Every tongue tie is very different and specific to each kiddo. It might be helpful to reach out to her doctor or a therapist with experience with tongue ties to help you figure out an approach that will work well for her. I hope that helps answer your question!
Best,
Andrea
Hello!
Do you have exercises that help the baby lift their tongue up? Mine is 13 months and she doesn’t always lift her tongue up.
Hey Amanda,
Tongue tip elevation can be a tricky skill for some to learn, especially little ones! Making silly faces in a mirror (trying to touch your nose, roof of mouth etc) with her can be really helpful! Showing her how to do it in an overexaggerated way is also great.
Best,
Andrea
Finding your blog post through my blind searches feels like a sign. My 8mo old daughter has had feeding issues since 11 weeks old. Well, technically since born as she would fall asleep feeding. But she has been refusing the bottle, even when she is clearly hungry, since then. We have tried different bottles, nipple sizes, feeding schedules, milk amounts, and taken her to a feeding specialist around 5mo where she mentioned a slight lip and tongue tie. It’s odd because she will bring the bottle hungrily towards her, start to suck, and then swat it away. Many times angrily. Sometimes she will vigorously drink, and seemingly a lot, but it’s only been 1 or 2 oz once she stops. Every single time. The only thing that works to get her to drink her bottle is getting her distracted with a toy or a show on our phones. I don’t like the distraction method, but it is the only thing that works and I need her to eat. With distractions, she drinks within 30 minutes; without takes 1-1.5 hours. We have done lots of dream feedings but those are no longer as effective as she ends up chocking lately. She seems to be doing fairly well with solids, but I’ve noticed a couple of things: she has started “pocketing” food; she can’t seem to suck or take the food off the spoon on her own (I use the roof of her mouth if I give her the spoon); when she has a larger piece of food, like a rolled up egg piece, she can’t seem to keep the pieces in her mouth. Not sure if any of this is related to low oral issues? I’m sure I’m forgetting something but I’ve been in so many mom groups on Facebook and scour all the posts praying I find an answer. The best example I can give is The King’s Speech. He was able to speak well when distracted by music. Once he had to think about it, he stuttered. Feels very similar to my daughter. Thank you for reading this far!
Hey Karen!
We’re so glad you found Your Kids Table! Thanks for reaching out. It sounds like you guys have had many different challenges! Those oral motor exercises are a great idea to start with her 🙂 When she pulls away from the bottle, it might be helpful to look and see if she’s giving any other cues that feeding might be uncomfortable for her. One other suggestion is when you’re feeding her with a puree on a spoon, you want to wait until she closes her mouth on it, verses using the roof of her mouth. Sometimes a little touch to her top lip can be a helpful cue! Here is a great article on teaching little one’s to chew. It would be worth checking out.
Hope that helps!
Best,
Andrea
Hi !
My son is 42 months (3.5 years) old. Still drooling. His whole body muscle tone is lose. He can use straw in particular ( munchkin) water bottle. But I follow he can not bites very well with any chewy foods. He can’t blow anything like bubble/ candle. But he can eat all kind of food ( though he is a picky eater ). He can’t use open cup. Now I’m hardly trying to use him open cup.
My question is how can I help my son get use into open cup.
N.B: My son has ASD.
We’re so glad you’re here! You’re right, lower muscle can make eating and drinking a bit more challenging. These oral motor activities are great to strengthen the mouth muscles. You might demonstrate to him how to close your lips over a cup (you can over exaggerate a bit). We also have a post about teaching how to drink from a straw that might be helpful.
Best,
Andrea
Hi,
I am having trouble opening the link for the oral motor exercises. Would you be able to send it to my email? Thanks in advance!
Kind Regards,
Paramesh
Hi,
Thanks for some of this information. My son is 35 months, he will eat but he only eats soft food. He does not chew and does not bite. If you give him a melting chip he will kiss it or lick it. He is in speech therapy and sensory integration therapy… How can I help him bite or chew? He refuses…
Hi! Thanks for reaching out! Sometimes imitating an over exaggerated chew yourself can be helpful. You might check out our post on how to teach a toddler how to chew. I hope that helps!
Best,
Andrea
Hi my daughter is 23 months and will now put a lot of food in her mouth and suck on it for awhile but always just spits it back out. She doesn’t chew or swallow. Reading your article was very helpful and gave me a lot of exercises I need to be doing with her to help her move her tongue around and chew. My question is though how do you do oral exercises with someone that also has oral aversion? She is comfortable putting things to her mouth on her own now but won’t let me bring anything to her mouth or touch in and around her mouth. So I can’t get her to put a toothbrush in her mouth or any vibrating tool. When I try to demonstrate chewing now she will just hold her mouth open. She also will cry if I say chew your goldfish like this and demonstrate. Then she’s don’t “eating” and upset cause I mentioned the word chewing.
So glad this article was helpful for you Mandy! We know how hard this can be! I’d make very small steps. Having her allow you to place the toothbrush on her hand and do some play, then working on allowing it on her arm, then shoulders, etc. Working your way to her face, lips, mouth, etc. This is a slow process but take pride in the small wins. You can read more about oral aversion and how to conquer it in the article here
Best,
Desiree
Hi, I’ m Autism Teacher and I have a 6 y/o, female student who has a problem in drinking the water. She has been drinking sweet drinks like chocolate drinks for years. So, when I try to teach her to drink the water, she won’t swallow the water because she doesn’t like the plain taste and She will cry and yelling if I give her the water. Because of this, she has problem with toilet-train because she can’t pee and having constipation almost everyday. How can I help this poor kid?
Hey Lyn,
I’d work on trying to sweeten the water first! There are many options for flavored water or drops to add yourself. As she starts to tolerate this, you can decrease the amount of the flavor you are adding to the water (slowly over time). So that she becomes more accustomed to the plain water. Hope that helps!
Best,
Desiree
You start with mixing very small amount of sweetener in her water and encourage her to have it. Sweetener is added just to change the taste of plain water. Gradually keep reducing the amount of sweetener and end up giving her plain water. She may show reluctance in consuming that but still she should be encouraged to have it in little portion frequently. The process may take a longer time but eventually it may help her consume plain water.
My son is 4 yrs 3 months can’t pronounce mama, baba and he drools.. Any advice you can help me with to guide him would be much appreciated.. Haven’t received the email yet despite trying several times
Hey Enzo,
If your having trouble with the printable, reach out to us at hello@yourkidstable.com and we will be happy to help get that to you! These activities will be great for oral motor skills. For any speech concerns, I’d reach out to an SLP for specific skills to work on as well!
Best,
Desiree
My son is 2 years old and has no problem eating purées but is picky in which ones he will eat and none with vegetables. He wants to eat food really bad because when he sees me with food he will say “have some?” But he will only lick solid foods. When a solid is in his mouth he will try to pull it out or gag as if he is stuck on what to do with it in his mouth. I’ve tried soo many different food options and the only thing that I can get him to enjoy is pizza, pb&j, toast with butter or a bagel and the creme of an Oreo. But all of those things he will only lick. I have made arrangements for him to see a feeding specialist but it’s becoming very concerning and stressful and I’m running out of ideas
Hey Tianna,
Thanks for reaching out! Sounds like your little one is not chewing of any foods, you can learn some tips in our article HERE to start working on that skill. We do also have a free workshop that does help in addressing moving from purees to table foods, even at 2, since he is not chewing any foods this can be helpful! You can save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hello , my name’s Fanta. My daughter has 3 years old .I started introduce solid food, when she was 3 months , and she never accepted. We tried tried tried, but she doesn’t want to eat any solid food. She drinks milk 3,25% 4 times a day ,even In the middle of night, I have to wake up and feed her. When I fees her she is pocketing food in her mouth for hours. She is now Armenia and not growing well , and it is normal because she is not eating. She doesn’t want to touch different food texture . Please help.
So happy you reached out! First we do have an article on Pocketing Food I’d take a look at that for some suggestions to help you through. Also, her not wanting to touch different textures is something I’d start to try to work on through playing with different textures outside of mealtimes to ease her into it. Touching the food is the first step to eating. We do have a free workshop that is full of great information that may be helpful for you! Save your seat here
Best,
Desiree
Hi, my name is Jessica, and I have found myself frequenting you’re page, more and more. I’m not sure if that is a good thing, or bad thing ( in this instance). You have so much awesome advice, but I feel like I’m either not sure if I am looking at the right resources, or if I have a unique problem. My daughter is 12 months, as of 6/26. We are not having trouble getting her to eat table foods. I started her on solids at about 4 months, but really amped it up , around 6 months. She ate baby cereal/oatmeal, and any type of puréed fruit, vegetable, or meat, with no problems. Around 7 months, I began giving her rusk teethers, then moved on to puffs, crunchers, and would put frozen fruits in a mesh teether — she ate all of these with absolutely no problems. Eventually I moved on to sliced banana, egg -scrambled with pureed sweet potato she loved the first time, but didn’t care for it the next time, hard boiled eggs, sweet potato ( fries, mashed, cubed), softened veggies, toast, French toast, pasta, pizza, ground meat .. you get the point… however, she turned her nose up to it all ( except toast – grilled cheese and French toast — she clearly likes toast). She use to give everything a try, but if uninterested in it, she would quickly pull it out of her mouth. Now, she won’t even look at anything new. I try different types of small amounts on her high chair plate, including things she does like too. She doesn’t want to try the new stuff so much that she ends up screaming about it, which in turn ruins the meal completely ( even the stuff she does like). I try not to pressure her, or push her, and go with the flow of her ( as you suggest in a lot of your articles). Now I feel like Im completely failing, or have failed already. I didn’t let her try enough different texture foods earlier on, so now I missed her window. We just had our 12 month check up, and her ped didn’t seem to really help much. Told us to wait it out a month and come back if not improved. She’s not under weight or height, she’s in the 75th for weight and 95th for height. She’s been walking since she turned 11 months, Now I feel like I’m trying to play catch up and teach her all things at once. Cows milk ( which she seems to like), weaning the bottle, etc. I’ve been using a transition formula and mixing with cows milk since she isn’t getting much nutrients elsewhere. Again, our dr didn’t give us much advice on how to fix this problem, and told us we didn’t need to buy formula anymore and transition her to cows milk ( though she isn’t getting much for solids, as she is starting to turn her nose up to puréed food now, because I think I caused a negative experience for her somehow). I give her a spoon so she can dip her spoon in it, while I use a different spoon- that works sometimes. She’s been eating her puffs (etc.), on her own, ever since she started getting them. She’s definitely independent, but obviously still needs help ( she still wants me to hold her sippy cup of water most times). I’m just at a complete loss, and I feel like I’m making matters worse for both of us. I’m a teacher and go back to work in the fall ( after being home since March due to the pandemic) and have really been trying with her, but feel we have gone backwards. I try not to show or let her feel my anxiety, or rush her, or keep it too long. I let her guide the way. Do you think this is an oral Sensory issue, or feeding issue, picky eater problems? You stated a preference of crunchy foods Over soft foods seem to be A red flag. I don’t want her to get too old and still have this issue. I feel like that is negligence on my part, I want to be sure I’m doing all that I can. Thanks so much in advance!
BTW. I apologize for my typos. I tried to write super quick, and didn’t re read it until after I pressed submit. I swear my English is better than what I sent, ugh!
I also meant to write “ we are now** having trouble with getting her to eat table foods)
Hey Jessica,
You have not failed, you were doing the best that you could with what you knew. For starters, I’d try to work on doing some play with the foods outside of mealtimes to get her comfortable with touching and peaking her interest in these foods, to see how she does with that. We do have a free workshop that might help you with some strategies and tips you can feel free to save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hello there I am a mom of a 10-month-old boy who keeps gagging on food even if it’s soft food. We will do scrambled eggs oatmeal we’ve tried picking up any purée with baby cereal he doesn’t gag all of the time. He just started the gumming food motion but doesn’t seems to be doing that too much. He will eat purées… try food no matter what it is but gags … which terrifies me that he is choking. He doesn’t seem to stick his tongue out. I just ordered the vibrating teether you suggested .. any tips for what I can do until the supplies come in? I am terrified I’m failing at this and need some help please .
Hey Katie,
Thanks for reaching out! Until you get the supplies, I would be utilizing a tooth brush in/around his mouth as this is helpful to decrease the gag reflex as well as help with the tongue movement. We do also have a free workshop that is helpful for the transitioning to table foods, you can save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hi Alisha,
I was wondering which of the above exercises I should be doing in order to promote closed mouth chewing. My son is 3.5 and still chewing with his mouth open. When I’ve had him try to chew with his mouth closed, he has not been able to :(. Thank you so much, in advance!
Best,
Alex
Hey Alex,
You can try practicing in front of the mirror. He may need that visual to see what is going on and work on it.
Best,
Desiree