"Add a spoonful of sugar, measure out a glass of water, roll out the dough" - did you know that all these activities help your child develop basic cognitive, math and motor skills? Cooking together with your child is a great way to spend time together, and also great fun that can teach a lot.
Do you remember the moments you spent with your parents in the kitchen as a child? Rolling dumplings, baking and decorating gingerbread cookies? It probably didn't occur to you at the time, but these moments helped you develop a number of skills that you use now in your adult life. The smell of homemade cake evokes pleasant memories, and as a parent you probably want to pass on to your child the traditions that are close to you. Maybe your child has been cooking for a long time, or maybe he is just starting his culinary adventure? In any case, this text is here to summarize the many benefits of cooking together with your toddler.
Cooking with your child - there is a lot of learning behind the fun
Cooking with a child has a positive effect on building family bonds, shapes social skills and dexterity (trains motor skills). What are the advantages of cooking together with a toddler? Look below.
Speech development
Cooking with your child has a positive effect on the development of his language skills. While you spend time at the kitchen counter, the child hears you name the individual ingredients. He also learns how to follow directions. When you cook with your toddler, ask him to pass the ingredients to you (provided he can handle them). Explain what you are doing step by step and ask him if he can describe what he is doing. Ask your child if he or she can predict what you will be doing next or guess what the next ingredient will be. It's a simple game that will stimulate children's curiosity and have a positive effect on language skills.
Motor development
Cutting shapes with cookie cutters, rolling, mixing ingredients - all these activities develop fine motor skills and strength of the toddler. Motor skills will be needed by the child at the school stage. It will manifest them while cutting, coloring or writing. Now that he's in the kitchen with you, he can practice them, for example, when you let him quickly mix ingredients or pour them into a bowl.
Practicing math skills
Cups, spoons, pinches - cooking takes a lot of measurements. When you spend time with the children in the kitchen, you help them practice counting. And if your preschooler is already familiar with the first letters and numbers, you can ask him to read simple commands like: "Add 2 tablespoons of water." For older children, read the recipe step by step and see if they can follow the instructions. This exercises your reading comprehension skills.
Attention exercise
Cooking with children requires a bit of diligence. Otherwise, the dream of eating a self-baked muffin may come to naught. When cooking with you, your child learns that he needs to be focused and pay attention to detail. Skipping any of the steps in the recipe will make the dish go wrong. The child is able to understand it really quickly.
Developing independence
An independent adult, he learned it somewhere before. Cooking or self-preparation of meals is a skill that will be useful to everyone in life. The child can quickly learn how to make a sandwich or pour milk into a glass. Older children may try to prepare meals for the whole family on their own. Cooking with your child is also a way for them to learn basic safety rules, such as not to touch hot dishes or the stove, or how to properly use a knife.
Promoting healthy eating habits
Letting children participate in cooking together helps them learn what is healthy and what is not. Self-preparation of meals will also encourage them to try new flavors, which in other situations might not be possible. Cooking with children shows them that home-cooked meals are healthier than those "in the city", which in the future will pay off in the fact that our children, faced with a choice, will be more likely to choose a healthier option.
Building self-esteem
A child who is involved in household chores not only feels needed, but also feels proud and confident that he can do something on his own. Cooking together strengthens self-esteem and independence.
Strengthening relationships
Cooking with your children, as well as sitting down at the family table together, will strengthen your family ties. Nor does it have to be treated as a daily duty. You can make it a ritual and a favorite tradition that you will celebrate for years. Maybe it will be cooking Sunday lunch together or pizza for Friday dinner? Family food preparation will surely give you all a lot of pleasure and strengthen family relationships.
Do you cook with a child? Take care of his safety
Cooking with a child can undoubtedly be a lot of fun. It is all the more pleasant when the baby feels more and more satisfaction that he can do what mom and dad do. But when cooking with children, we must remember about their safety. Therefore, what we decide to entrust to a toddler must be adapted to his capabilities. A preschooler won't pick up the sharpest knife in the kitchen yet, and in fact is still too small to cook something on his own (especially a hot meal).
Remember to always supervise what a small child is doing in the kitchen and never leave him unattended.
Special furniture and children's kitchen accessories, such as, for example kitchen helper will allow the child to stay in the kitchen and increase its safety. A kitchen platform is a great solution for children who love to assist their parents. Thanks to it, the child is at the right height and easily reaches the tabletop. Cooking accessories aprons and gloves, they will protect clothes from stains and protect against possible burns.
When cooking with your child, let him do safe activities, such as mixing, serving previously prepared ingredients or kneading the dough. Also, keep it away from a hot oven or stove.
