Table Manners
When a kid is just learning how to eat, the focus is on getting him to eat, using whatever means necessary. Adding layers of decorum onto that is a complex affair. Manners are a very interesting piece of the parenting socialization project. What makes dining etiquette different from preventing biting or kicking or grabbing toys is that bad table manners don't exactly "hurt." They offend people's sensibilities, not their bodies, or even feelings. Getting a two-year-old to comprehend this idea is pretty much a hopeless cause. Luckily, most children don't require an in-depth understanding of why they're asked to behave a certain way in order to learn the behavior. Teaching a kid how to act at the table requires some of the same things as teaching him how to act on the playground: practice (for him), and patience (for you).
Most young children cannot learn a behavior just by being told once or twice. It often takes a period of steady reminders for a child to even be able to reliably mimic the behavior. If you're looking for him to initiate it regularly, it can take much longer. We can certainly relate to the frustration of telling a kid something endless times and seeing little sign of his comprehension. But usually, it does eventually sink in. It might take weeks, it might take years. In the meantime, you might try a little repetition on yourself: These things take time! Read more from Rebecca Odes & Ceridwen Morris...
