Do you love baking or cooking with your kids? That's wonderful! But have you ever considered exactly how valuable that time in the kitchen is with your little one? Truly! Baking is such a fun, engaging and very educational activity. Not only does it allow you to make memories and bond with your child, but it also stimulates learning in a variety of ways! Here are some of the ways your child can benefit from baking!
Builds math skills
Baking offers tons of opportunities to build your child's math skills. If the recipe calls for 2 cups of flour, they are counting. By measuring out each ingredient, they are learning about fractions, and wholes. They are understanding volume, capacity, and accuracy of measurement. They are also differentiating between types of measurements such as a teaspoon and tablespoon, grams and ounces, etc. The list of math benefits could go on and on!
Teaches scientific concepts
Cooking is science and it's actually quite fascinating when we take a minute to break it down. Your child is learning about temperature and how it's measured in degrees. They are also witnessing how each ingredient has a specific role and reaction in the batter. If the recipe calls for baking soda, for example, you can explain to your child that when combined with the acids in the mixture, it produces carbon dioxide gas that causes it to inflate or rise.
Following directions/instructions
Inevitably, there will be lots of moments in your child's life where they will need to be able to follow directions or instructions well. Cooking in their own home creates a safe, fun opportunity for children to comfortably learn that skill!
Pride
Creating a culinary masterpiece takes a whole lot of effort and time. But even if it's not so much of a 'masterpiece', a sheet of burnt cookies can provide very valuable lessons for children. Through baking and cooking, they are seeing what patience and effort can accomplish. It allows them to see how such effort is worth it in the end and ultimately feel proud of what they've created! Let's be honest, we could all use more of that!
Promotes responsibility and life skills
Being aware of temperature and time is a crucial part in baking. Whether you are modeling the behavior or having your child be responsible for keeping track of time, they are learning to be mindful of priorities and managing other distractions. Plus, time in the kitchen and learning to cook in general will help them in the future when cooking for themselves or for others. It's an invaluable life skill. Additionally, baking treats for someone or cooking a warm meal for a family in need teaches them about friendly gestures and serving others.
Bonding/connection time
This one might be the most obvious and it's probably my favorite. If I tell my girls that we're going to be baking something, they sprint to the kitchen! It truly is a special time for us helping each other and creating memories. They love it because they get Mom's undivided attention and we get to chat and laugh and all other disturbances are left at the door.
Enriches oral vocabulary
There are several specific recipe terms not found in every day speech that are important to know while cooking/baking. For instance, sauté, sift, whip, beat, fold, etc. might not be familiar to most kids. So baking and cooking with them allows for an opportunity to learn these terms.
Boosts reading skills
This one is more for older kids, but even my littler ones are being exposed to letters and words as we go through our favorite recipe book. And I think any reading opportunity is time worth spent, so that gives me even greater reason to have them be part of the baking process.
Develops fine motor skills
This is a great one for those tiny tots. By helping them pick up spoons or utensils, they are practicing that pincer grasp. They are also developing hand eye coordination when stirring batter and holding a bowl at the same time.
Promotes social skills
This one is awesome and definitely one I wouldn't think of right off the bat! If there are multiple children engaged in the cooking/baking activity, it creates a space for them to execute a plan together, delegate assignments, take turns, and wait for others to do their part. Even if it's just you and the child, there are lots of ways they can practice social skills through cooking or baking.
Needless to say, there are numerous reasons why children should be included in the kitchen. If you love an activity that gives everyone a break or that's already on your to do list--PLUS fosters opportunities for learning and growth--this is most definitely a fantastic one to have your kids be a part of! Plus the end result is sure to bring smiles on everyone's face!
