Tips for 4-H and Youth
Cooking up some fun
BY: NORMAFLANAGAN

Someone's in the kitchen with Mama, and they are not strummin' on the ole banjo - they are cooking! Cooking activities are a great way to introduce your kids to new foods, allow your children to develop self-esteem by allowing them to contribute to the family meal and to help your children become more self-sufficient in their eating. Actions like scrubbing, tearing, rolling and pouring develop motor skills. Cooking activities help develop socialization skills like sharing and teamwork. It's also a great way to improve your children's language skills. Small children can understand new words like flatten, freeze, blend, add, strain and sift because the words are acted out in cooking activities. Cooking activities can even improve your children's science skills because they become accustomed to observing foods and predicting how they will change during cooking. Cooking gives kids and opportunity to observe, question, interpret, reason and solve problems.

So, now that you are convinced to get those kids in the kitchen, how should you go about it? Keep in mind that safety is the most important cooking skill. This means you should plan projects that are appropriate for your child's level of development. For instance, some two year olds can scrub and tear so involve them in making a salad. Most three year olds can mix, shake and spread. Four-year-olds can roll, mash and peel. Most fiveyear olds can measure cut, grate and beat. Keep in mind, though, that kids develop at different rates, so you have to judge for yourself your child's readiness for any activity.

Supervise constantly, but keep your participation to a minimum. Always keep a first aid kit handy - accidents happen even to the most experienced cooks. When cooking with kids, make sure your child can sit or stand at a-comfortable level while working. Turn pot handles away from the edge of the range to prevent spills and burns. Keep instructions simple and short. Whenever possible, use items that are unbreakable.

Remind your kids:

1) to always wash their hands before handling food and after, handling raw meats and

poultry, and to keep hands away from hair, mouths and nose, while preparing food.

2) to use hot mitts for putting things in or taking things out of the oven, lifting lids, etc.

3) to keep fingers away from mixer blades or blender blades.

4) to chop or slice on a cutting board, not in their hand.

5) to never plug in or unplug appliances with wet hands.

6) to roll up their sleeves so they don't get caught on pot handles or get too close to

burners.

7) to be careful when opening and handling cans because lids can be sharp.

8) that cleaning up as you go is an important part of cooking.

So get the kids in the kitchen and cook up some fun - the safe way.