Teaching cooking to children? This thought can only make you imagine all the chaos that will happen in your kitchen. But there are many good reasons to introduce your children to the joy of cooking. And here is what I feel the benefits of Cooking With Kids are and how we can help them gain these skills.
“Cooking is a skill, and it can help kids find out about nutrition and what it means to eat healthily.”
Did you know that cooking can boost the development of your child? Kids’ cooking activities can help them develop confidence and skills naturally in the kitchen. In addition, cooking together can give you the perfect time to chat about food and its role in our lives. Stir the pancake, measure one cup of water, roll out the dough…. all of these tasks help kids develop necessary academic, cognitive, and motor skills.
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Benefits of Cooking With Kids
Enhances Fine Motor Skills
Stirring, measuring, rolling, squeezing, and spreading are just a few of the kitchen tasks that allow young children to develop their fine motor and hand-eye coordination skills.
Increases Maths Ability
Counting (three spoons of any material), number recognition (on the scale), mathematical language (bigger/ smaller), multiplication(doubling a recipe), weighing (scales), and fractions (1/2, 1/4 cup) are just a few of the many mathematical skills that can be developed in cooking.
Boosts Language Development
Talking and describing what you are doing can expose children to new words and terms. They can also practice by reading the recipes.
Learn About Health And Hygiene
You can make them learn why to clean veggies and fruits before using them. Develop a habit of always washing your hands before starting work in the kitchen.
Introduce Kids To The Scientific Concept
Children can learn changes in colour, texture, and form(liquids, gases, and solids) and make observations. Click here to read an article on How To Discover Your Child’s Passion.
Create A Special Bond With Family
It is an excellent place for parents to spend quality time with their children; it is also a great environment for siblings to cooperate and communicate, building stronger relationships.
One of the amazing benefits of cooking with kids is that it can help them develop an adventurous and varied taste palette. Those involved in the cooking process are generally keener to try new foods. The younger you start, the better. Involving children in the kitchen from a young age cultivates a habit that will have lifelong benefits.
Cooking Skills For Preschoolers
Some tasks are well-suited for kids ages 3-5. This age child can spend not more than 10 mins for any activity. Children strengthen their fingers and develop coordination and control as they learn to spread, hold, tear. So start small and keep it fun. Here are some ways :
- Tearing cabbage.
- Assembling sandwich.
- Stirring batter.
- Wash of vegetables and fruits. Arrange all ingredients in one plate and ask them to recognize it.
Cooking Skills With Elementary Students
Giving your child a task in the kitchen gives him a sense of responsibility and independence. This is the age to make them feel they are in charge of it, and they will do it with more enthusiasm. By the time they are in school, children have the coordination to complete many simple kitchen tasks such as :
- Using cookie cutter.
- Peeling apple, cucumber, carrot (use a safe peeler ).
- Mashing potatoes.
- Beating eggs.
- Kneading / Rolling dough.
- Mix all ingredients for the salad.
- Spread (cheese) toppings.
- Squeezing the juice out of a lemon.
- Measuring ingredients into the cup.
Cooking Skills For Older Kids
These kids are ready for the challenge. Give them a chance to decide where to start. Assist them and supervise if your child needs a lesson in using any unfamiliar cooking equipment. When you involve your kiddo in the cooking process, they will be more willing to try new food and more adventurous foods. This is a huge benefit that will make many situations throughout their lives easier. You can ask them to do this :
- Step-by-step instructions to prepare the cake.
- Ask them to make grocery lists.
- Using mixer, blender.
- Dicing fruits and vegetables.
- Boiling pasta, veggies.
- Arrange all ingredients on the pizza and set them to bake.
- Ask them to make a mojito, sharbat, milkshake.
- Ask them to serve food at the time of meals.
Cooking With Kids Is An Excellent Way
Always remember, it needs patience, so better dont start this when you are in a hurry. Start on holiday or in the evening when you are free from work. Think now this is your kids – mommy time, and no distraction is allowed. Dont forget to shower them with praise and acknowledge the work done by kids. Atleast they have shown interest in learning cooking skills.
You can talk to them about good nutrition and why you chose the ingredients you’re using. It can lay the groundwork for healthy eating later on. You can tell them about all the utensils you are using and how different stoves are there. Tell them about the different types of equipment you use for your convenience. Children need supervision when they are in the kitchen. Give frequent reminders about what’s OK to touch and what could hurt them.
To Summarize
Questions are a great tool to spark a kid’s interest. They ask questions because they want to know and understand how things work. Moreover, they are keen to know why they do, & what they do. So it is essential to answer them when teaching a child to cook. It is also fun for adults, even if they dont know the answer, to sit with the child and find the answer and talk about what they found out. Here are 20 Easy Recipes to Make with Your Kids.
Nurture the child’s love for cooking by getting them involved in the kitchen. This is a good symptom that kids will definitely continue if their mother handles them with love, patience, and care. Encourage and inspire little chefs to become the best chef they can be when they grow up. Your kids will love spending time with you, you’ll have fun together, and you’ll make memories. Bon Appetite!
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