Before the Bite: Why We Play With Food First
Getting silly with food isn't bad manners — it's how kids learn to feel safe enough to eat it.
If you've ever watched a feeding therapy session and thought, "Wait… are they just smashing crackers?" — yes. Yes, they are. And it's completely intentional.
One of the most common mistakes well-meaning caregivers make is putting a new food on a child's plate and expecting them to eat it. For many kids — especially those with sensory sensitivities or feeding challenges — that's a little like asking someone to jump into a pool before they've ever seen water. The food has to become familiar before it can become edible.
Food Is Information (Not Just Fuel)
Before a child can feel safe eating something, their nervous system needs to gather data. What does this thing look like? What does it smell like? What happens when I touch it? These aren't stalling tactics — they're the brain doing exactly what it's supposed to do.
In feeding therapy, we meet kids right where they are by making food exploration feel low-stakes, predictable, and — most importantly — fun. Here's what that can look like in practice:
👊 Smash It
Pressing or smashing food reveals its texture — is it soft and squishy or does it crumble? Kids get to see what a food is made of without it ever touching their tongue.
✂️ Break or Tear It
Tearing food apart gives kids a sense of how hard or soft something is. Is it tough like a piece of meat or does it fall apart easily? This builds a mental model of the food.
✋ Smudge It
Smudging or spreading food shows its consistency. Is it wet? Dry? Sticky? Runny? Tactile exploration through the hands is a much gentler entry point than the mouth.
👃 Smell It
Tapping food to the nose or holding it just under the nostrils gives the olfactory system a chance to preview the flavor. Smell is deeply connected to taste — this step matters.
✨ The goal isn't to get the child to eat the food today. The goal is to make the food less scary — so that eating it someday becomes a real possibility.
Why Jumping Straight to Tasting Backfires
For many kids, being asked to put an unfamiliar food in their mouth is genuinely overwhelming. The sensory input is unpredictable — they don't know if it will be slimy, too crunchy, too bitter, or fall apart in a way that surprises them. That unpredictability can activate a real stress response, not just "picky behavior."
When we rush to tasting, we often skip the steps that build tolerance and trust. And when a child has a bad experience with a food — gagging, crying, a power struggle at the table — it can set the relationship with that food back significantly.
Playful food exploration gives children agency and predictability. They're in control. They can smash the strawberry, smell it, push it around the plate, and walk away — and that's a win. Each low-pressure interaction chips away at the fear, and over time, curiosity has room to grow.
So the next time you see a child mashing peas into the table or holding a piece of chicken up to their nose like a detective — don't panic. They might just be doing the work.
Contact Corina Today!
580-339-0995 | thefoodieslp@gmail.com
References & Further Reading
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA). Feeding and Swallowing Disorders in Children. asha.org
Toomey, K.A. & Ross, E.S. (2011). SOS Approach to Feeding. Sequential Oral Sensory Approach — a systematic, play-based feeding program used by SLPs and feeding therapists worldwide. sosapproachtofeeding.com
