Baking with Your Kids

Written Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 by Sarah Dorer

Teaching your kids to bake can be a great way to spend time together and can be a lot of fun as well. But did you know that you are also teaching your child valuable information that they can used in their daily lives, at the same time? There are a lot of skills that can be learned through baking, and here are some of them:

Math

There is tons of math involved with baking. You can teach them how to measure dry and liquid ingredients while making it fun. Kids love hands on learning, and what can be more hands on than filling a measuring cup with berries, or squeezing out the correct amount of chocolate syrup? While they are measuring make sure to throw in some questions as well, such as "What do we get if we add 1/2 cup and 1/3 cup together?" Turn learning math into a fun experience and they will grow to love it, almost as much as those chocolate brownies they made.

Organization

The key to baking is being prepared. You want to make sure you have all the correct ingredients, measuring devices, and any other utensils you will need. You can have your children look over the recipe before you begin and make a list of any items that need to be picked up at the store. Then have them start gathering all the other items required, such as pots and pans, whisks and spoons, and spices and sprinkles. Teach them to group like ingredients together (dry and wet) as well. This is a skill they can carry over to school, and their jobs later on in life.

Following Directions

Baking is a great way to teach your kids how to do tasks in a certain order. Teach them how to mix dry ingredients together first, then mix in the wet ingredients. Ask them questions like "Would it make sense to add all the ingredients into the pan before me mixed them?" or "What would happen if we put the icing on the cake while it was still hot?" These types of questions can help them learn reasoning skills that will be used in homework and many other activities. Also remember to teach them to always wash their hands before and after cooking. They may not always remember the correct steps, but with repetition, they should start to become better with directions.

Responsibility

Giving each child a responsibility in helping make the cake will help build self esteem and confidence. Let younger children wash and dry berries, or knead dough, while older children can help measure ingredients. You children will feel so proud that they contributed and will want to help you cook all the time. This is also a great time to teach them about completing a project from beginning to end. Remind them that after you have your finished item it is time to clean up and put things away. Being tidy is definitely a responsibility that can carry over to their rooms at home and desks at school.