Issue:
Mix it, Mix it, Make it, Make it, Bake it... Yum! Learning Through Cooking Experiences in Nursery School
By Nandini Battacharjya, Head Teacher, and Lauren Matheou, Teacher
As we started to provide cooking experiences this winter quarter, we noticed that many children selected this activity, stayed for long periods of time and returned throughout the week. We heard children gleefully entering the classroom asking, “What are we going to cook today?” The children soon expected and anticipated cooking as an everyday project.
Cooking experiences provide opportunities for children to learn principles of good nutrition and develop healthy eating habits, as well as explore elements of science, math, language and social connection. Baking involves chemistry as the children combine various ingredients and add heat or pressure. Preparing food offers opportunities to practice counting, measuring and learning fractions. Cooking involves new vocabulary as children gain pre-literacy skills following a recipe from top to bottom. Of course, cooking in the classroom requires children coming together as a group, taking turns, regulating their enthusiasm, and working toward a common goal. With all of the learning that’s happening, it’s important to remember that cooking with young children is all about the process.
Examining yeast as it bubbles up when we add warm water and sugar.
As a way to feed interest in the project, we chose books to read during story time that related to cooking. We hoped this would invite children with a variety of learning styles to connect with and invest in the cooking process. The recipe from the book Thunder Cake amused children as it called for tomatoes. We heard children declare, “You don’t put tomatoes in cakes!” However, they were determined to make the same recipe as the protagonist in the story, and were delighted to discover that the tomatoes added moisture... and how tasty the flavor was! Noll wanted to share his school cooking experience with his grandma, who was visiting, and reported on how the process unfolded: “We put flour and butter and sugar. We used a mixer! It did not look like what it was supposed to look. We dumped it in the trash can. Then we started all over again. This time, it looked like it was supposed to be. We put it in the oven. Daddy took it out of the oven for us. It tasted good. Grandma said, ‘Noll, you are a good baker. I liked it a lot.’”
As the quarter progressed, we gave children various ways to engage in the cooking curriculum. We introduced appliances and tools that children might not have seen in their home kitchen, including a pasta-making machine. The hand mixer was popular with children, as it was one of the kitchen tools they felt confident using independently. Pressure cookers lined the counter one week as the group followed a more complex recipe for vegetarian dumplings. Inspired by the story Yoko, we invited parents to come in and cook traditional dishes with us from different parts of the world, including Korean sushi, Indian pakoras and parathas, Russian blinchikis and Mexican tostadas.
Using a pasta machine to roll out pasta dough.
The Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza weaves in the virtue of being helpful, and the pizza-making table was filled with helpers that week. They were fascinated by the yeast, especially when they realized it’s alive. We began the morning by “feeding” our yeast sugar and warm water, so that it could wake up and help our dough rise. We practiced precision as we used various measuring and mixing tools to prepare the dough. Next, we rolled the dough flat before carefully pinching the crust. The children incorporated their sense of smell as they learned to recognize the fragrances of the herbs and spices that were added to the tomato sauce. Grace, who often uses our garden’s rosemary in her outdoor dramatic play, was delighted to clip some to use “for real” as we mixed some into Timesour dough one day. Throughout the week, children created a variety of pizzas—with or without sauce, cheese and olives—proudly stating their preferences.
The pun-filled companion books Spoon and Chopsticks conveyed messages of self-confidence and empathy, and we invited children to cook dishes that can be eaten with these utensils. Warm granola was topped with milk, and the chili surprised many children, who enjoyed vegetables they wouldn’t typically eat. We provided chopsticks for children to eat steamed dumplings, but they also enjoyed the challenge of using them with mandarin slices, apple pieces, cheese chunks and even graham crackers!
Children played out and extended their cooking experiences in dramatic play scenarios throughout the classroom. We had chefs cooking indoors in costume. In the play yard, restaurants sprouted up with handwritten menus. The sand area inspired a variety of baked goods, from pies to muffins to cakes. Twigs in the sand were also transformed into noodles, as children referenced the story Strega Nona. The sensory table often became a test kitchen for pineapple upside-down cake, magical potions and soups.
As we reflect on the quarter and have snack-time conversations about our classroom cooking, we see how much children have learned through this project. Children gained practice in turn-taking, measuring and patience as they followed a set of instructions from start to finish (including cleanup). Children who frequently cooked during our mornings together or at home began imagining their own unique recipes, often integrating ingredients they had worked with in the classroom. Through their drawings and recollections, children shared their observations and interests in the food and how it was prepared. We learned about texture, personal preferences, and trial-and-error. We experienced the joy of preparing and sharing a meaningful dish with our community, and how cooking and eating naturally bring people together and foster a sense of belonging.
When parents brought in recipes from their family, the children got a sense of how recipes can spark memories for individuals and hold significance within different families, countries and cultures. Teachers heard from parents how children eagerly awaited the recipes in the weekly emails, so that they could revisit these dishes with their loved ones at home. Parents and teachers found that these shared experiences in school encouraged a willingness to taste new foods and a curiosity about other cultures and traditions.
As children departed for spring break, we provided a compilation of the quarter’s recipes and related stories, along with a set of chopsticks. We wondered if the cooking curriculum would naturally culminate with the end of the quarter, allowing us to reintroduce more of the fine art materials into the daily experience. However, on the first day of spring quarter, many children walked by the art table with a look that seemed to say, “I remember when this was the cooking table….” Hans, one of our most ardent cooks, confidently approached the table with a familiar question: “What are we going to cook today?” We may have paused our daily cooking adventures at the art table, but the joy of cooking continues to be felt and shared throughout the indoor and outdoor environment.