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(Unit 5) Topic 8: Cooking Up Fun!

4 Clock Hours of Early Childhood Education

Cooking with Preschoolers

​Topic 8 Page 6

Cooking with preschoolers can be exciting and messy, but is an important opportunity for their social and emotional development as well as their fine motor skills, executive functioning skills and their exposure to healthy and nutritious food choices. As an educator it is important to be the guiding hand behind the meal choices that are made in your program. It is also important to let preschoolers have a range of options to choose from and allow them some freedom of choice in their food items. ​

​Preschoolers begin to value social interactions and are eager to participate in activities that adults often complete. Allowing them the opportunity to work collaboratively with both adults and peers creates an experience which is structured in a comfortable and relaxed way. Food is a universal language and by bringing a common element into a social situation it puts all parties at ease and allows them to bond around this common element.

​Adults can encourage social interactions when cooking by asking open ended questions, soliciting conversations between shy children and their peers, sitting children next to new friends, and making jokes or telling stories. When the cooked food is done and ready to eat, serving it family style is a great option to continue these social interactions. 

• Kitchen Activities for 2-5 Year-Olds, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion​, United States Department of Agriculture

• Cooking with Preschool Children, KidsHealth by The Nemours Foundation
• ​Snacks for Preschoolers, KidsHealth by The Nemours Foundation
• ​Cooking with Preschool Children in Licensed Child Care, Farm to Preschool, Growing Minds is a program of ASAP (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project)

(Unit 5) Topic 8: Cooking Up Fun! * Navigation Menu