Checklist: How to Teach Baby to Use a Sippy Cup

Drinking from a cup takes practice. Here are tips to help your baby try to drink from a sippy cup.

By the editors of Parents.com

___ First, go shopping! Pick up some plastic cups that have a wide base and a handle on each side, which makes them easier for your little guy to grasp and set down.

___ Start with just an ounce or two of fluid. If it's too heavy or unwieldy, baby might not want to bother with it.

___ Let him try breast milk or formula first. It's sweeter and tastier to babies than water or juice--and will give him an added incentive to sip.

___ Show him what to do: Sit down with your own sippy cup and let him mimic you drinking from it.

___ If baby plays with it instead of drinking from it, let him. At least he's showing an interest. He'll soon learn it's not just a toy--that there's actually yummy stuff inside.

All content on this Web site, including medical opinion and any other health-related information, is for informational purposes only and should not be considered to be a specific diagnosis or treatment plan for any individual situation. Use of this site and the information contained herein does not create a doctor-patient relationship. Always seek the direct advice of your own doctor in connection with any questions or issues you may have regarding your own health or the health of others.

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Comments

Comments (6)

bzewdie wrote:

My 11and half mo old son is stll breastfeeding and I want to stop, but he is resisting the sippy cup and i don't have any support from his dd. Can someone give me helpful advice on this please. thanks

10/7/2010 02:17:05 AM Report Abuse

Jenny587 wrote:

My older two held their own bottles and cups much earlier than this one.She's right on target with everything else but I'm not worried.They'll hold their sippie cups all too soon, trust me.As long as there's a bottle around they'll prefer it.I'd let 'em have it for a year, then when they were about a year & a half old, we put all the bottles in a basket and walked around our neighborhood to all the friends we knew who had little babies and my daughter gave them to the babies.

2/25/2010 12:02:29 PM Report Abuse

jenbeck24 wrote:

I have tried everything!!! My daughter wont take a sippy cup! She will take one sip and throw it on the floor.. I dont know what to do!! She will drink from a big cup--like I drink out of but she wont take the sippy cup.. She will drink from her bottle and a regular cup and thats it!! Help!!!

2/17/2010 01:16:17 PM Report Abuse

tiffanymgriffey1 wrote:

I have a 10 month old son and i gave him an empty sippy cup around 9 months to let him just play with it and get use to it. then i gradually started putting small amounts of formula in it. he took right to it.

12/17/2009 06:49:57 PM Report Abuse

kassiredmond wrote:

Have you tried to use a bottle first? Sometimes they'll take easier to a bottle rather than a sippy cup (you can worry about the sippy cup later). Be sure to buy a couple different brands of bottles. My daughter was very finicky over the nipple,the nipples are shaped differently and your son will have a preference. If you still wanted to try the sippy (or even if he has trouble with the bottle) full it with breastmilk, that might make the transition easier on him.

10/21/2009 06:36:58 AM Report Abuse

tomdav1s03 wrote:

My 9mo old son is stll breastfeeding and I want to stop, but he is resisting the sippy cup and i don't have any support from his dd. Can someone give me helpful advice on this please. thanks

10/16/2009 05:22:53 AM Report Abuse