Cooking Sharpens Your Mind

Cooking with kids can teach some essential basic cooking techniques while also sharpening their reading and math skills as they read recipes and measures ingredients. Kids also gain knowledge about food science as they combine ingredients and watch as their creations "come to life". Cooking with kids also give opportunity to talk about the importance of good nutrition and helps lay the groundwork for healthy eating in the future. Better yet, cooking with kids is easy and fun! Five and six years old can measure ingredients, cut soft foods with blunt knife, set the table, and garnish foods. Seven and eight year old ca help plan a meal, roll and shape cookies, beat ingredients with a whisk, find ingredients in the cupboard, and make a salad. Finally, 9-12 year olds can open cans, use the microwave oven, prepare simple recipes, shred cheese and vegetable and use an oven and knife under supervision.-- (source: Well Being by sodexo)