When it comes to keeping young children’s table manners up to scratch, parents seem to have a lot on their plate these days.
It seems that the battle for good behavior during family meals has been won by the youngsters.
A new study found that more than half the children in Britain don’t use a knife or fork to eat.
A shocking 54% of parents of children aged four to ten say their children don’t use a fork or knife properly at meal times.
A new study has found more than half of British children do not eat with a knife and fork
60% of children eat with their hands only, while nearly a fifth will lick the plate if they have the chance.
The study, by children’s cutlery maker doddl, also found 28 per cent of parents admit their children talk with their mouths full, which they would have been told off for doing at the same age.
The study of 1,500 parents found this has effects beyond the family table – as 23 per cent often feel humiliated when at a restaurant with their children.
46% let children watch TV at the table, while 35% let them use a tablet or smartphone at mealtimes.
Stacey Zimmels, a speech and language therapist specialising in paediatric feeding, said: ‘The onset of portable screens has replaced the family mealtime in many households’, meaning children ‘can be less exposed to a varied diet and have no demonstration of how to use cutlery’.
