My 3.5 year old son is very good about brushing his teeth but he is not very good at spitting the toothpaste out. So far I've mostly just been focused on the brushing part with occassional reminders to spit. But it seems like when I ask him to spit he swallows the toothpaste first then tries to spit. I'm going to start putting more emphasis on the spitting part, but was just wondering at what age your kids became pretty good at spitting out toothpaste. Just trying to figure out what my expectations should be.
Thanks Mamas!
Around that age for my older one (who is 4 now), but I used to scoop some water in my hand and hold it over his mouth first and then he'd spit it all out. (Not choking or drowning him, but it gave him enough more in there that spitting felt easier I think.) My 2 1/2 year old still swallows no matter what I do, so he gets just a dab of toothpaste and a lot of water to drink afterwards.
He'll get it soon. I think my son was spitting well by 4.5 or 5.
The amount of toothpaste they have to swallow to be harmful is HUGE, so don't stress about that.
I used to have my son use a Dixie cup, swish & spit to practice. That might help your son too?
(Oh--and once boys master the whole "spit" thing it lasts forever! LOL)
My 3.5 year old son has been spitting for probably a year or more. He watches me and wants to do whatever I am doing, so I taught him early. I use very little toothpaste, then add more if I need to. I do the brushing first until the majority of the toothpaste has been spat out, then I hand over the toothbrush for his turn. He rinses and does a swish/spit on his own.
My daughter is almost 3.5 and I would say in the last 6 months or so she's gotten much better. She still does swallow a bit of toothpaste sometimes, but I think a little bit is okay! He'll get it...tooth brushing is hard, there are so many steps to make sure they do and remember!
My 4 yr old is just now starting to spit....and it is only a little bit when he brushes his teeth. He mostly dribbles it out of his mouth, but it definately is a start! My 2 yr old is already figuring it out. Don't worry, he'll get it!
I taught mine to spit around 2- 2.5 in the tub with plain water and it helped keep mess at bay. They learned pretty quick. I would put a dab of shaving cream on the wall and have them clean it off by taking water in the mouth and spitting it out. they love doing this. Hope this helps and mine are experts now! LOL
my daughter has since shes 2 and shes 2 1/2. She watches me brush my teeth and when i spit she spits. but she does eat the tooth paste alittle to.
My son learned to spit around two years old. But he likes to lick toothpaste sometimes.
My son will be 4 in May and he sounds a lot like your son. In the last three weeks or so, he is finally getting better at spitting and doesn't swallow the toothpaste as much. We've been working on it A LOT because I want to be able to switch to toothpaste with fluoride soon.
My kids are closing in on 3. We don't use real toothpaste yet but they already know how to spit.
