4 Reasons to Cook with your Kids
In my house, we cook a lot. Most meals are cooked at home and eaten together at the table. Don’t go picturing this beautiful elaborate meal with well-dressed kids eating all of their broccoli. In fact, many nights it is simple things thrown together in less than 30 minutes, kids arguing over who sits where at the table and at least 1 kid screaming “I don’t like that” before they even get to the table. It is reality of feeding 7 different people and trying to have something - even just one thing – on the table that each person will eat.
It doesn’t mean I have given up and handed over each kid a jar of Nutella and a spoon! It means I have to be more intentional with including kids in the kitchen. While the kids don’t help with every meal, they love to make special desserts and treats. Here are few benefits I have found to keeping the kids in the kitchen to cook – even though it usually takes twice as long as doing it myself!
Reasons to cook with your kids
1. Something to do together. With everyone being home, it is easy to become occupied with technology and spend the whole day apart. Don’t get me wrong, my kids definitely spend time on their Kindles and I am not here to entertain them all day. Reality is, we are working from home and sometimes, need the house to be quiet. We can also only do so many activities, read so many books, and do so many worksheets before losing it! Cooking is a great activity of togetherness!
2. A chance to connect with our kids. When we cook with our kids, it gives us time to relax and talk. As my daughter is getting older, she doesn’t always share what is going on in school and with friends. When we cook, it strengthens our connection and usually by the time we put the cake in the oven, she is opening up and more willing to talk and ask questions about things that interest her or she is curious about.
3. Learning opportunity. When we cook, we talk math and science. We talk about measurements and comparisons such calculating how many ¼ tsp we need for 1½ tsp of vanilla. You can use cooking to talk about different cultures or times in history depending on your ingredients. It also opens up time to talk about nutrition and where food comes from. We can talk about agriculture and farming, food quality and food safety.
4. Way to get kids to eat better. If getting kids to eat their vegetables is a struggle in your house, I am right there with you! My kids would live on Nutella if I let them and often refuse to try anything new. Including kids in preparing the food is a great way for them to feel proud of the meal they prepared. If you let the kids have some say in the meal, they are more likely to eat it because they feel they were given some power and not just told what to eat.
Try it! If you haven’t been regular at cooking and now are forced to be home and cook. Experiment as a family! Take it as a chance to connect and experience something together.
