As the weather gets colder and the days shorter, parents and caregivers often are searching for ways to keep their children engaged and learning. One great way to promote your child’s literacy development is to have them cook with you in the kitchen. You can teach them new vocabulary words as you introduce them to different foods and ingredients. Helping your child read a recipe is another way to get them to learn in the kitchen. In fact, reading a recipe not only improves literacy skills but math skills as well! Strengthen their gross (large) and fine (small) motor skills by allowing them the opportunity to stir ingredients into a bowl, roll dough into different shapes with their hands or a rolling pin, or measure out ingredients. You can also help your child make connections with the world around them by sharing stories about family recipes or memories of your own time in the kitchen when you were young. For many reasons, cooking together is a fantastic way to make new stories and memories together with your child!
For further information on how to incorporate food and cooking into your child’s learning development, check out this article from Scholastic!
Need some recipe inspiration or ideas on how to introduce your child to cooking in the kitchen? Check out these titles and more at La Porte County Public Library!
