Is this behaviour something to be concerned about?

amother

Teal

Thu, Nov 16 2017, 7:19 am

My 3 year old daughter is very slow when it comes to eating, walking etc.
It is more than just a little slow - the whole playgroup will be playing and she will be halfway through her sandwich. Even something that she finds tasty, she still eats it so slowly. Her playgroup teacher has talked to me about it. When I feed her supper, she eats fast.
The same with walking...everywhere takes ages to get to.
Is this something I should be concerned about?
Thanks

seeker

Thu, Nov 16 2017, 10:02 am

If that's the only thing worrying you, I wouldn't worry too hard but I'd keep an eye on it.
No idea what things are like by you (your spelling of behaviour indicates that we may not live in the same country Wink

), but here in NY the preschool department of education provides free evaluations and interventions for kids ages 3-5. So if you have something like that where you live, it would be a good idea to get an OT evaluation and OT services if indicated at age 4. I say age 4 because at 3 it's not worrisome enough with nothing else going on and by 4 there might be more to see, and once you turn 4 you're running out of time because starting at the beginning of the year you turn 5 they don't provide the same services anymore unless you received them earlier.

amother

Jetblack

Thu, Nov 16 2017, 3:44 pm

My dd is like this too, she's been like this for some time, she is almost 5 now. She has been evaluated by doctors for a million other things. It was suggested to us by a professional that we use timers to help her learn to stay on task and do things more quickly, just make sure to start with a generous amount of time. I recommend the Time Timer (look it up on amazon) as it's easier for even very young children to see the indicator of how much time is left.

amother

Teal

Sat, Nov 18 2017, 2:36 pm

Thank you for your replies.
I'm not sure about the timer idea, because I don't want her to develop a mentality with food that she needs to scarf it all down without swallowing.

amother

Jetblack

Sat, Nov 18 2017, 3:00 pm

My dd takes an hour to eat a meal, it basically takes over most the afternoon/evening. So start with a timer for 55 minutes, then move down in 5 minute increments every few days until you get to 20 minutes or 30 minutes or whatever you feel is reasonable. No need for scarfing down food, a 20-30 minute meal is enough time to really eat.

petiteruchy

Sat, Nov 18 2017, 3:35 pm

what is she doing during meal times? is she talking? is she watching other kids? is she playing or picking at her food?

it's really not uncommon to see kids that age and into kindergarten take forever to eat lunch. they get distracted by the action around them, they're listening to a friend's story, they're telling a story, they are picking up picky eater behaviors from their friends.

a couple things to try: number one, a no talking lunch... the first 10 minutes of lunch time need to be completely silent. this lets the distracted kids get a head start on eating, and is a nice way to enforce a calm eating atmosphere. After the 10 minutes, the kids can start talking but quietly.
number two, if the no-talking thing doesn't help or won't be enforced by the teacher, you can ask for her table to be a no talking table, have her start eating early, or give her a timer (set at 10 minute increments - she should be done 1/2 or 1/3 of her lunch when it goes off, then reset).