Teaching Your Children How to Cook and Prepare Food

At some point in your child's development, you are going to want them to learn how to cook. Here are some simple suggestions for showing them the basics. These newly learned skills will be valuable to them as they grow older.

Safety needs to be your first priority. If your child has to stand on something like a stool or a chair to reach the stove, he or she is too young to cook. Wait until they are tall enough to work the stove. As long as your child can reach the table, they can help by setting up and clearing the table. You may want to use unbreakable dinner plates as accidents will happen. You don't want anybody getting cut from broken dishes. Your young child can also gather ingredients and stir and mix things together.

The handling of knives and other sharp instruments needs to be taken seriously. The same goes for hot pans and boiling liquids. Set firm safety rules and follow them. A good start would be to avoid the cooking and sharp objects aspect of preparing foods and go with the cooking tasks that don't require these items. Preparing food in the microwave would be a good alternative.

Start by teaching your kids about the different utensils and how they are used. Spices and herbs are another good start. There is a great deal of science and math learning in the kitchen so your kids will be learning while they "cook."

There are some great, simple cookbooks in the marketplace for children. They include step-by-step instructions and pictures so kids can see what to do and how the items are suppose to look.

With experience, your children can graduate from doing what you tell them to do to planning the dinner. They'll need lots of help here, but give them the chance to voice their suggestions. Take them to the food store and let them help you shop. It will take longer to do your shopping, but the learning experience will be great. They will realize that preparing a meal takes a lot of time and effort.

As time passes and they have the basics of easy American dishes, go for the recipes of different cultures. Italian sausages and French crepes are fairly easy to make. You can make the dinner an international event. What a great learning experience.

Some of the tools you use in the kitchen may be too large for small hands. You may have to purchase the right sized kitchen utensils. Many department stores or specialty shops will have what you need.

Don't forget to capture the moments by taking pictures. You will be creating memories that someday will be as unforgettable as those cookies you and your child are baking.