Cooking Experiences

Something that is really high on my homeschool priority list is cooking experiences. Up until recently I was not very competent or confident in the kitchen. I really want my children to know that cooking/baking is not only very doable but can be fun! 

And as a bonus, cooking and baking work on a lot of skills! With all the measuring, adding, subtracting, fractions, and counting there is some serious math going on. Mixing different ingredients and learning their properties is beginning science. It is also a sensory activity because, for example, flour feels, tastes, and smells different than sugar or baking soda and yet all are white (so cool!!). We are working on social skills when we take turns and we learn new vocabulary with each experience! It's amazing what one activity can incorporate. Not to mention it is a good life skill to be able to cook food for yourself :)

The cooking activities I plan are as hands on as possible. I let the kids do pretty much everything: measure and dump, break eggs, stir, pour, use the mixer basically everything but using the hot stove because they are not physically able to. I love this because it gives them a chance to learn and experience. Saffryn is actually really good at all the above and rarely gets shells in her eggs! All because we practice!!! I plan to do at least one a week and can vary from sweets, to lunches and snacks to breads...anything!

So one activity we just recently did was sugar cookies. You know I had never made sugar cookies before. I didn't even own a rolling pin and had to get one for this activity (see competent or confident until recently!!!). So it was a first for all of us! 

Here are some pictures:

And a fun thing about making cookie dough...it tastes good! Haha!!!

So I tried to get Colt involved and set him in his high hair with some flour for a sensory and he had NONE of it! He just kept telling me all done. So I got him out of the chair and the silly boy climbed up into one of the "big" chairs and was content to eat raisins and watch the big kids make and play with the dough! Lol!!!

Once the dough was made I let them play with it and experiment with it and of course taste it! They had a blast trying out my rolling pin!

Then eventually we were ready to make shapes. Now most of you know my dislike for sea creatures so you may be surprised to see the shapes...but that is all we have! And there are a few random blobs they wanted to add. Ha!

Yes those are whales (shudder). 

Moving on...

They ALL enjoyed decorating and eating them!

It was a fun project. But I have to be honest, by the time everything was cleaned up my bigly pregnant self was feeling all the standing, moving and cleaning that went along with it! Only 11.5 weeks left...I think I can, I think I can...