Dining and Table-side Seating
The importance of proper positioning seating cannot be
overemphasized. Beginning with a baby’s positioning for breast and bottle
feeding, posture impacts success. As a baby grows and can sit independently,
a chair that supports proper posture in the upright position improves safety
and success for feeding- not only managing food within the mouth, but independently
bringing food to the mouth independently.
In order for baby to focus her attention to controlling movements of the lips, jaw and tongue, she mush be properly supported in her seat. Otherwise she will have to focus energy on maintaining an upright position, detracting from her emphasis on eating.
Baby’s feet should reach the footrest of the highchair (which they rarely do!)
and baby should be sitting upright, not slouched down or leaning to one side.
As baby learns to finger feed and use a cup, proper posture become even more important, as baby cannot freely use her arms and hands when she needs them to help her sit up!
Tripp Trapp Chairs
Due to their multiple opportunities for size adjustment, Tripp Trapp chairs are AMAZING and provide the opportunity for perfect positioning!! Even better, these great chairs grow with your little one from 6 months throughout childhood- eliminating the need to purchase several chairs as your child grows.
One of the best things about the Tripp Trapp chair is that they can be pulled
right up to the family dinner table to your small child does not feel isolated
during meal time! The baby rail and chair cushion help customize the chair for
your child’s stage of development. The chairs and cushions come in a variety
of colors and finishes to blend in perfectly with your family dining area. The
Tripp Trapp Chair was featured on 9/27/07 Martha Stewart’s “Mommy Must-haves” and
Ellen Degeneres’s
5/11/07 Mothers Day show!
Floor Sitting
Bumbo seats are wonderful as they allow young babies the independence of sitting unassisted! As soon as baby develops head control, she can sit upright in the Bumbo seat! Using the Bumbo seat with a tray is a great alternative to floor sitting- even after baby can sit on her own. This tray is large enough to place stimulating toys up at eye level and a supported posture allows more sophisticated use of arms and hands.
Child Sized Tables and Chairs
Child sized table and chairs are important for posture during fine motor activities like coloring and writing. Feel should be flat on the floor and the table should be around elbow height.
You may need to do a little measuring to determine the right size for your child. A footrest (such as a phone book) can be used if the chair is a little to big.
| Medium Sized set |
Smaller set |
and even smaller still |
the tiniest set I could find |
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Positioning for Hand Use
Easels are great for promoting good positioning for hand development for during coloring activities because it encourages children to slightly bed their wrist back, rather than forward, when holding a writing tool.
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