Bread Baking

Savvy and I have been baking together since she was 18 months old.  We began with spoon dropped sugar cookies prepared on a work surface spread out at a toddler's level right on the kitchen floor (it was sparkling clean, I assure you!).  We've since become more adventurous lately by adding homemade yeast breads to our repertoir, and the work area has moved up to a more traditional height!  I remember helping my Aunt Mary bake bread in my grandmother's kitchen when I was a little girl.  I loved the feel of the floury dough between my fingers and the sweet smell of the yeast.  The best part of the process, though, was the magic of the dough rising after a time.  So exciting for a little kid! 

Bread baking has so many benefits.  It speaks to each of the 5 more obvious senses - taste, touch, see, smell, even hear (the mixer or the scraping of the bowl).  It also works the lesser known proprioceptive sense thanks to the heavy work involved in kneading and shaping.  So good for the body! 

One mustn't forget the academic benefits, either.  By taking your child into the kitchen with you and putting her to work, she gains math and science skills at the minimum.  We chose to make yeast dinner rolls this time, and we used this particular session to add a little art to the day, too.  Savvy had the freedom to shape her dinner rolls into anything she wished.  We ended up with letters, a cross for NaiNai, a walking stick insect, a cat, a tree, etc.

In the end, we had a bunch of quite tasty math/science/art lessons to add to our dinner that evening. 

If I remember, I'll add the recipe when I have more time.  These were so yummy with a sprinkling of kosher salt on top.

K

P.S.  I almost forgot!  Cooking or baking together allows your child to hone practical reading skills when she is ready for that.  Savvy is comfortable enough to look at a recipe and begin pulling out supplies and utensils without direction from me.  I prefer these "natural" reading lessons over formal reading lessons. (this works great with board games, too, by the way)