Hi, a warm welcome to the site. You can find more information about this in your course handbook -
page 9+ of this book will help.
Babies are completely dependent on others for their nutrition and hydration. As they grow and learn they become more independent. So at first they suck and drink only by mouth with the help of others. Then they begin to use their hands to explore eg. grasping the sides of the bottle and later, pieces of food, moving them or the object towards and into their mouths. As their teeth start to come through harder foods are enjoyed through biting and chewing and then by slowly introducing tools, children discover how to position and maneuver items such as beakers/cups, spoons, forks and then knives that enable them to eat and drink with minimal assistance from others.
Fluids - breast milk, formula milk provided in
bottles with teats, mashed &
pureed foods fed by adults on
small spoons, finger foods for
baby-led weaning and
food nets, drinks in two handled cups with
lids & spouts.
Child sized cutlery and foods that have been cut into manageable pieces. Adult sized cutlery and meals that vary only in portion size and personal preference, drinks served in regular sized, open mouthed cups, with or without drinking straws.
http://www.childrensfoodtrust.org.uk...t/early-years/
Hope this helps a little
Best wishes