How to Teach a Baby to Drink from a Straw

It's a baby's natural instinct to suck and get liquid. Once your baby is strong enough to sit up on her own, or in a high chair, you can practice teaching her how to drink from a cup, bottle or straw. Babies are curious and like play with straws anyway, so drinking from the straw is a big event for them. Plus it keeps them busy in a restaurant. They watch you drinking from a straw and they're always interested to try whatever the bigger people are trying. It's not hard to teach and using water is a good idea. The baby will enjoy the hydration and learning a new action.

Instructions

1. Put a straw in a glass of water. Put your index finger over the top of the straw, trapping some water inside.

2. Lift straw out of the water. Make sure there's some water inside the straw.

3. Put the end of the straw with the water dripping out of it into your baby's mouth. Slowly let some of the water into her mouth. She'll start drinking it instinctively.

4. Try doing this a few times, until she knows to suck on the straw to get the water out when you hold it in her mouth.

5. Now hold the glass of water with the straw in it the right way, bring the cup over to your baby and watch your baby drink out of the top of the straw.