We always put out a fork and a knife. Spoon only if we are having soup or stew, etc. The knife cuts meat, spreads butter, etc. The typical American way really is not very officiant though: fork in left hand, cut with right hand using a knife...then switch the fork to the right hand to actually eat the piece.

In Germany we adopted the European way which is holding fork in left hand, cutting meat (or whatever) with knife in right hand and then just using the left hand to put food in the mouth - since that fork stabbed it anyway - oh and tongs down instead of up like they would be in the right hand...make sense??

If the food is softer and does not need a knife, then we eat with a fork in the right hand and with tongs up - sometimes using a knife in the left hand to help chase peas and things like that onto the fork