Children love to help adults cook and there isn't anything children can't learn through cooking.

• They practice motor skills such as scrubbing, tearing, pouring, rolling, kneading, peeling, cutting, grating, slicing, spreading and shaking.
• Their language development is enhanced through discussions while cooking, reading the picture recipe, following directions, sequencing and making comparisons.
• Math is learned through counting, measuring, classification and number recognition.
• Science is learned through discussions about how food changes during the cooking process. They learn about hot and cold, floating and sinking, dissolving, evaporation, browning, leavening, melting and freezing.
• Social skills are developed by having to take turns, work together to complete the cooking project, and learning how to share responsibilities.

2-year-olds can ...

• Scrub food.
• Tear, break or snap foods.
• Dip food items.

3-year-olds can ...

• Put toppings on a pizza.
• Add decorations to cookies.
• Wrap foil around potatoes.
• Press dough into a pan.
• Cut out biscuits.
• Pour milk or juice (practice first at the sink).
• Stir with hands (bowl should be twice the size of the mixture.)
• Shake pudding or mix in a ziplock bag.
• Crack nuts in a heavy plastic bag with a mallet.
• Grease baking pans.

4-year-olds can ...

• Peel eggs, corn and tangerines.
• Scrape carrots.
• Roll and flatten biscuit dough.
• Juice fruits.
• Crack eggs usng a plate or flat bowl.
• Spread soft peanut butter with dull knives.
• Mash egg yolks for deviled eggs.
• Cut soft fruit, cheese or vegetables with a knife.
• Roll cookie dough into balls.
• Arrange fruits, sandwiches and crackers on a plate.
• Mix a salad.

5-year-olds can ...

• Measure ingredients.
• Stir with a spoon.
• Beat eggs using a fork, whisk or egg beater.
• Grind cranberries or apples.
• Grate cheese or carrots.

• Knead bread dough.
• Learn to use small knives safely under supervision.
• Mash or sieve cooked apples.
• Grind cooked vegetables or fruits in a food mill.