The Littlest Chef - Cooking with Your Child

The thought of letting your child be your sous chef in the kitchen may cause you to shudder, but it can really be quite fun and beneficial for you both. It just takes setting up the right situation as well as having the patience to move a little slower and get a little messier.  

The joy of including children in cooking is more about the process than the finished product, so adjusting your expectations can make it a more successful experience for everyone involved. It often takes a little release of control (on your part) and allowing for some margin of error. 

For example, take something simple, like making brownies from a box mix with a 4-year-old. If you allow him the opportunity to really participate (not just watch you, because let's face it, that's just no fun for him), then you might end up with a few egg shell shards in the mix and part of the batter on the counter. That's ok.  Repeat that to yourself if you need to; "That's OK!"

But just take a minute to look at him as he cracks his first egg and feels the squishy yolk, stirs the batter cautiously at first and then with increased speed and control, slightly improves his pouring abilities within the span of making a batch of brownies, and marvels at his finished product. Think of what you have helped him to gain in those few minutes: confidence in succeeding at something new, better pouring skills, a little increased strength from all that stirring, new respect for you for letting him cook, and some quality time with you. Isn't that worth a few eggshells in the cookies and a little batter on the counter?

Here's where letting your kids help cook actually works in your favor - the older the child, the more they can do, and the bigger help they actually are in the kitchen. Think about that - they can actually HELP you! So start working on the pouring, measuring, stirring, and chopping skills when they're young so that they've got the experience to do it more independently in a few years. Don't be afraid to let toddlers in on the action too. Even the youngest chef can participate in small ways, especially with a little help.

Suggestions for Cooking with Kids

1. Choose age appropriate tasks - Young children do well with short, simple tasks like stirring and dumping ingredients, with an adult's assistance. As children get older and have improved coordination, allow them the opportunity to practice things like pouring, measuring, cracking eggs, etc.  

2. Keep it simple - Your child doesn't have to make the entire meal or recipe with you for it to be a successful experience. Choose parts of the recipe or meal that your child can most easily help with.  

3.  Have realistic expectations - Plan on getting messy and needing extra time. The finished product may not resemble your best work, but that's not what really matters.

4.  Have patience - Keep your child's abilities and attention span in mind when choosing tasks for them to be involved in. But do allow them to get involved, no matter how much harder you think it's going to make the cooking, you just might be surprised how much fun you have.

5.  Choose the right time - If weeknights are chaotic for you and a mad dash to get dinner on the table before bedtime, then choosing the weekends to cook with your kids is probably the best situation.  Allowing children to participate in cooking does not have to happen every day for them to enjoy it and learn new things, but by doing it on a somewhat regular basis provides them with the opportunity to improve their skills.

6. Use kid-friendly cooking utensils - They really do make these and sell them at stores and online. Look for small whisks, spatulas, crinkle cutters (for kids to chop with - they have a dull edge), even a kid size apron makes them feel like the real deal (and keeps the food off the clothes).

7. Remember that cooking with kids is about teaching them and having fun. 

The Benefits for Children

The opportunities for children to participate in cooking tasks provides many benefits that go beyond just learning to cook and improve other developmental skills.

- Strength: Stirring, lifting, and carrying improves upper body strength. 

- Coordination and control: Dumping ingredients, chopping, stirring, cracking eggs, measuring, and pouring.

- Sequencing: Following directions in order improves sequencing abilities. 

- Reading: If your child is old enough to read, following recipes works on reading skills, comprehension, and new vocabulary; if your child is learning to read, looking for words they know or sounding out new words on ingredient containers helps to improve reading skills; and if your child is not yet a reader, looking for familiar letters or numbers on containers and learning new vocabulary is also important for future reading.

- Sensory experience: Feeling the variety of textures involved with cooking is important, especially for young children who are still developing their understanding of the objects in the world around them; feeling food textures and becoming comfortable with them can also help young children and picky eaters expand their food interests.

- Math and Science: Older kids can work on addition, subtraction, and fractions in real life situations; simple arithmetic, counting, and concepts such as more/less can be taught to younger children through cooking; science concepts can even be introduced to kids of all ages through cooking.

- Confidence: Helping, creating a final product, and learning new skills are all confidence boosters for children.  Cooking builds confidence in a positive way that watching TV or playing video games cannot.  

- Values: Spending time with family while cooking, cooperating, and enjoying the final product together teaches and reinforces values that cannot be taught by watching TV.

Take the time to involve your children in the kitchen and you might just be surprised by how much you all enjoy it!