Even if you are not a "Master Chef", letting your children help you out in the kitchen is an incredible way to promote learning and development. It can also be a fun way to spend some family time together. Cooking and baking improves NumeracyOne of the reasons that children struggle with numeracy is that mathematics tends to be something that we keep in the classroom. As such we don't get much time to explore and build numeracy concepts. If we don't have the concepts we can't apply them to solve mathematical problems. Discovering mathematics in everyday life builds these important concepts in a fun and meaningful way! |
Working in the kitchen helps to build concepts e.g. measurement, division, size, weight etc. Children learn to problem solve when recipes have to be adjusted to accommodate the number of mouths to feed or figuring out which containers are best to use so that all the ingredients will fit or when choosing to substitute an ingredient for something else because of an allergy or simply that it's not available.
Cutting sandwiches into shapes, or baking different shaped cookies builds geometric concepts. Spatial skills are improved when, for example, planning how to get the most number of cookies out of the rolled out cookie dough using a variety of cookie cutters. Decorating cookies or cupcakes etc. helps children explore their creativity, but also builds fine motor skills.
Cutting sandwiches into shapes, or baking different shaped cookies builds geometric concepts. Spatial skills are improved when, for example, planning how to get the most number of cookies out of the rolled out cookie dough using a variety of cookie cutters. Decorating cookies or cupcakes etc. helps children explore their creativity, but also builds fine motor skills.
Creating something gives a sense of accomplishment and builds confidence!Taking photos of your children's creations and sharing them is a great way to get other family and friends involved and again builds confidence and a sense of accomplishment and encourages future participation in similar activities. Remember to keep it fun! Remember that everything we do and experience is an opportunity to learn. Problem solve around what didn't quite work out as planned and think how to use what's turned out differently (give it another name, or turn it into something else). This keeps up motivation and lets the creative juices flow. Having themed nights, for example, making traditional meals from different countries, builds not only kitchen skills and numeracy skills but also improves general knowledge! There really is no limit to how you can use the kitchen as a tool to build concepts and relationships... After all, when we LEARN, we GROW.. |