03/02/2024
Feeding Therapy can be a complex process involving lots of progressive baby steps. It also requires a variety of approaches which are tailored to each client and their needs. Throughout this journey, there are lots of ways to make Feeding Therapy fun and engaging!
In this post I'm sharing 3 ways in which I recently worked with my clients to introduce non-preferred foods during Feeding Therapy sessions!
📷 Photo 1
⭐️ Take baby steps! ⭐️
We can progress to non-preferred foods by taking baby steps. This often means that we start with preferred foods and work our way towards non-preferred foods. While the progression varies for each client, one example is: start with two preferred foods on different plates next to each other, and slowly progress to them being separate but on the same plate, then have them touch on the same plate, and then introduce non-preferred foods in a similar way. In the first photo, we're starting to add non-preferred foods (noodles) to same plate as the mixed preferred snacks (cookies and crackers). Our next step will be tailored based on this client's reactions and engagement.
📷 Photo 2
⭐️ Include a preferred game or toy! ⭐️
In this photo, you will see that I placed a preferred activity (the shapes) in the non-preferred food (cooked pasta). The goal here is to manually remove the shapes from the non-preferred food and put them into the shape sorter. This requires interaction with the non-preferred food without direct interaction/touching.
📷 Photo 3
⭐️ Provide the food in a safe/comfort zone! ⭐️
In this photo you'll see a plate of food on a mini trampoline. The trampoline is a comfort zone for this client and she won't jump on the trampoline while the food is on there, which allows us to put the plate on the trampoline safely. Sometimes going to the table for non-preferred foods can be intimidating for children because the table sets an expectation that food must be eaten, and we never want to place that kind of pressure during a meal! As a result, we relocate the non-preferred food to a safe zone. Ultimately, we do want to work back to introducing the food at the table to build a strong mealtime routine.
