Cooking

Cooking

Children can learn almost anything through cooking, including lessons in nutrition, culture and STEM. Many children love preparing food because they can taste delicious treats and feel satisfied after making something. Cooking can be incredibly social, allowing for meaningful small group and one-on-one interactions.

NQS and EYLF

The National Quality Standard asks early childhood education services to promote healthy eating (2.1.3). The Early Years Learning Framework asks children to take increasing responsibility for their own health (3.2). 

Cooking encourages curiosity, imagination, creativity, commitment, enthusiasm, persistence, confidence (4.1), problem solving, inquiry, experimentation, hypothesising, researching and investigating (4.2). Cooking also involvesmaterials and technologies (4.4).

Recipes for children

Early childhood educators should be brave and use their imaginations when choosing recipes to cook with children. Don't restrict yourself to stereotypical choices like pikelets and cupcakes. Children are quite capable of roasting eggplants or even a leg of lamb.

Think about what you want your children to learn. Do you want them to fall in love with vegetables, improve their fine motor skills, or understand how technology is used in everyday life? Look for recipes that are meaningful and support your chosen learning outcomes.

Recipe collections

Here are some recipe collections to get you started, but remember to ask your staff members and families to share traditional recipes from their cultures.

Easy recipes

Cooking doesn't have to be complicated. You may not even need a recipe!

  • Use an air popcorn maker.
  • Squeeze fruit juice. On a hot day, use it to freeze ice blocks.
  • Thread cubes of fruit on wooden skewers.
  • Offer children ingredients to make their own sandwiches or wraps for lunch.
  • Learn about good bacteria - use a yogurt maker.
  • Blend avocado to make a quick dip. Make toast soldiers to eat with your dip.

Learning experiences

Follow a recipe

Every step of a recipe provides opportunities for children to apply their skills. Children can:

  • see how a recipe is written
  • find ingredients in the pantry
  • count and measure the ingredients
  • use kitchen gadgets
  • stir mixtures, grease baking trays, and toss salads
  • use good hygiene and food safety practices 
  • turn on ovens, microwaves and kitchen timers.

Play with measuring cups

  • Give babies and toddlers sets of measuring cups for stacking. 
  • Teach preschool children about fractions as they pour ingredients (e.g. dried rice or beans) between different measuring cups.
  • Talk about the different sizes and colours of measuring cups and spoons.
  • Add measuring cups and jugs to water play experiences.

Cut with knives

Many early childhood programs around the world successfully teach children how to use knives and other sharp tools, like vegetable peelers and graters. Children can learn respect for kitchen safety while developing their fine motor skills.

Always assess the risk associated with cutting activities and provide careful supervision. Start with safer activities, like slicing a banana with a butter knife, and progress as your children become more capable.

Use the kitchen scales

Give children kitchen scales to play with. Let them explore the scales without explaining what they are for. Once the children understand that scales are for measuring weight, let the children weigh various items in the room (blocks, books, potatoes, leaves etc.)

Observe scientific changes

Cooking involves physical and chemical changes. Talk to children about what is changing and what is causing the change. Examples include:

  • Breaking a piece of bread into smaller pieces to make crumbs.
  • Freezing juice to make ice blocks and then watching them melt on a hot day.
  • Creaming sugar, butter and eggs.
  • The changing smell and colour of food being cooked.
  • Rising cakes and expanding bread dough.

Plan a menu

Involve the children in evaluating and planning your centre menu. What meals do they like and dislike? What new meals would they like to eat? 

Family and community connections

Ask families and staff members to contribute to children's cooking experiences by:

  • bringing in kitchen utensils and gadgets
  • sharing traditional recipes, including cultural dishes
  • following the same recipes at home
  • taking home food that their child has cooked.

Interactions

Educators can develop children's vocabularies by using descriptive language while cooking:

  • Quantity: "We need five apples."
  • Smell: "Warm bread smells delicious."
  • Colour: "Green vegetables are very nutritious."
  • Size: "Should we make a big cake to share with everyone?"
  • Taste: "Is the lemon too sour for you?"

Events