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The Art of Cooking with Children



Young children, whose curiosity is at a peak in the preschool years, are naturally interested in cooking. Look at the early pretend play experiences that very young children act out...they almost always include stirring a pretend birthday cake batter, serving coffee, or engaging in other food or cooking motions. Preparing and eating meals together as a family make some of the most memorable times and can provide time and venues for open communication between family members. Meaningful cooking experiences can open many doors for children as a natural way to introduce basic concepts in math, science, and literacy. The hands-on nature of cooking lends ease to learning these concepts that are often much harder for children to grasp in abstract terms. Cooking also helps to develop a child's sense of competence as they complete a task from start to finish...and oh, how tasty that finish can be!



When cooking with children, it is important to allow them to actually participate in the process. With the fast-paced lives that many of us lead these days, sometimes the additional time and mess that children can add to cooking may not be convenient and probably acts as the biggest inhibitor to starting a cooking relationship together. Make time. Cooking together is easier than it may appear if the proper preparations are allowed. Before attempting to teach a three-year-old a technique like flipping pancakes, it is imperative that a child be allowed to experiment both with materials and equipment at his or her own pace. For example, while you are mixing the batter, your child can experiment with a bowl filled with some flour and some basic cooking tools like a measuring cup, whisk, and sifter. After he or she has had some fun exploring the texture and consistency of the flour and has had a chance to imitate your actions, try adding some water to the flour. Let him pour it in then talk about what happens. This is science in action. Open-ended questions (for example: "What happened to the flour when we poured in the water?" or "How do you think the batter will change if we add more water?") will encourage both language development and critical thinking skills. See, already, we are learning and we haven't even actually cooked anything yet!



After your child has had ample opportunity to explore cooking materials, simple techniques can be introduced. Let your child observe you doing the technique first and describe the process verbally as he watches you several times. For example, you might say, "See how I hold the bowl with one hand, and use the wooden spoon to stir the batter with my other hand. I am stirring slowly so that the batter doesn't splatter out of the bowl." Then stand back and talk him through it as he attempts it on his own. Most preschool-age children can master basic cooking skills after practicing a few times. By the time a child is four years old, he or she may be able to master stirring and mixing, shaking ingredients in a bag or jar, spreading soft butters or jams, scrubbing fruits and veggies, greasing baking pans, tearing leaf veggies, breaking or snapping beans, dipping or dredging ingredients in flour and egg batter, kneading bread dough, pouring, rolling with a rolling pin, peeling with hands (bananas, eggshells, and corn husks...) cutting and mashing soft foods. Once dinner is in the oven, including children in activities like setting a kitchen timer and setting the table, help to develop early math skills including time perception and one-to-one correspondence. Now we're cooking and learning! Part of the learning process also includes observing natural consequences like cleaning up the egg after it rolls off the counter and breaks. Cleaning up fosters responsibility in children. They should be encouraged to take part in cleaning up both their own cooking messes and family dinner messes (ie: putting the rinsed dishes into the dishwasher or drying and sorting the silverware as it is put back in the drawer).



Cooking and eating meals with children, together as a family gives children so many opportunities for learning including the development of a healthful approach to food and eating. Instead of the "eat to live, live to eat" philosophy regarding food, adopt a more soulful philosophy that will allow your whole family to fully share and enjoy meals together. Spending a little more time cooking with your child will surely be time well spent, nurturing mind, body and soul.