Question

A mother wants to train her family members to take turns in cooking meals for the whole family. How should she proceed?

Answer 1

There’s so much a mother can do to creatively involve kids in the cooking of family meals Here’s some general tips for streamlining things when there is more than one cook in the kitchen.

• Give each child their own designated spot in the kitchen so they know where to go without being told.
• Take out all tools and ingredients you’ll need before you start to cook.
• Give each child an assigned job.
• Experiment with “deconstructed” meals with multiple options each child can prepare. Some examples include tacos, salads, or sandwiches.
• Offer plenty of encouragement as kids embrace their own unique roles.

Lead by example. Kids who see their parents approach cooking with a positive attitude are far more likely to do the same

The skills needed to prepare and cook foods will last your members a lifetime. Skills include

• following a recipe
• measuring
• preparing food (chopping, slicing, mincing, stirring, mixing, peeling, cracking an egg, etc.)
• cooking techniques (baking, boiling, frying, toasting, simmering, sautéing, etc.)
• cleaning up

Increasing their responsibility builds confidence. So, don’t be afraid to let them learn from experience at this age. One spilled glass of milk or dropped plate may teach them much more about being careful than a hundred invocations to “watch what you’re doing.”They might now be able to peel and grate independently as well as cut harder, thicker foods like vegetables or bread.

With their increasing ability to conceptualize, many kids can begin to understand parts-to-whole measurements. Teach them the basics of quarters, halves, and full measurements like teaspoons and cups, letting them scoop and dump and on their own.
You might use a chart to list out skills your children are learning, giving a sticker for each one you observe them do successfully. Or simply give a sticker for each meal they help with, working your way up to a designated number. Celebrate with a reward when the chart is complete.
by these a mother can proceed further because now they learn valuable skills that can translate into helpful meal prep. Once you start looking, you’ll find dozens of recipe books geared now ask them to Choose one with plenty of pictures and step-by-step instructions. Then, encourage them to try their hand at making a dish from the book, like a simple side dish or dessert.
Allowing them to do so is an extremely valuable exercise. Try to keep an open mind—and a patient attitude. Giving each child their own unique role in the kitchen reaps major dividends of skills development, communication, relational bonding, and eventually less work for mothers.