www.1001TopWords.com |
Cooking With Your Kids Helps Develop Motor Skills for Preschoolers
Did you know that cooking with your kids is a natural way for them to develop motor skills? If you've never looked at cooking that way before, think again. There's a reason why kids have a universal love for cooking - just like for stacking blocks and banging! Cooking is especially good for preschoolers and here's how: 1. Two year olds are developing large muscles in their arms: They will enjoy stirring and stirring and stirring :-). My two year old is always asking to stir; and her subconscious knows why! At 2 years old, a child naturally imitates circular strokes as part of their normal physical development. So, let them stir at every opportunity. Here are some ways to encourage arm muscle development through cooking:
2. Two year olds are developing the ability to turn pages: Another motor skill developed during the preschool age is the ability to turn pages. So - just pondering here...is it the story they love so much or just turning the pages of the book? Well, actually both. They need the motor development of turning the pages; and the pictures and vocabulary improve their intellectual development. 3. Two year olds love "patting" and "pressing": From being fascinated with "patty-cake" chants at an early age, preschooler's still love to pat and press. I'm sure you'll recognize your preschooler doing this at the park: scooping up rocks or sand, piling them up, and patting the top into different shapes. Well, here's some suggestions to bring the "patting" inside:
4. Two year olds love to dip - and this develops arm muscles skills too!: it takes a lot of coordination to dip! Getting the food in the dip, then moving the arm and somehow getting it into your mouth. If it wasn't difficult, they wouldn't get food all over their face! :-) So, unless your 2 year old always has a clean face when he or she is done eating, here's some dipping opportunities:
So, instead of "shooing" your preschoolers and 2 year olds out of the kitchen, let them dive in with these simple tasks that not only give them great pleasure, but help them develop their age appropriate motor skills. About The Author Laura Bankston is author of Internationally selling Cooking with Kids Curriculum: "Homeschool Cooking in a Box" and the "Homeschool Cookbook". She currently home schools her three children, maintains home school support websites, and manages their family-owned service business. For information on her curriculum and free home school support services, please visit http://www.homeschoolcookbook.com
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Three Best Alternative Treatments for ADHD There are a LOT of alternative treatments for sale out there for people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder who would rather not have to use a strong medication such as Ritalin. Some of these are good, some are fair, and some are bad. Old-Fashioned Ways to Inspire Children "Walk through any toy store and you will see walls and walls of toys that are loud -- toys that require batteries, have flashing lights, or that look like your child's favorite movie character. What is there for parents who want to raise children with imagination and curiosity? I'll tell you what we do. We choose to fill our houses with the following old-fashioned items. Medications: Addressing Parental Fears and Concerns Recently, a parent came to me, conflicted over whether to follow her pediatrician's recommendation of placing her young son on medication. His difficult behaviors had escalated in recent years and after trying behavioral strategies and food elimination diets, there simply hadn't been much progress in his maintaining himself. His behavior at school was deteriorating to the point where the teachers were concerned about his progress academically, psychologically and socially. When the medication suggestion came up, Jane (not her real name) was distraught. Free Stuff for Twins: Incentives for Parents of Multiple Births A sure way to double the joys of parenthood is to give birth to twins! You'll have twice the smiles, goos & coos, giggles, and firsts (first words, first steps, first burps...) But for many soon-to-be parents of twins, once the excitement wears off, the math sets in... How To Teach Your Children Self-Reliance and Potential Self-reliance and potential are two very important values that I'd highly recommend parents teach their children. From Good to GREAT: Secrets On Becoming A Better Dad While most fathers aspire to become the best Dads they can, all too often life just seems to get in the way. Missed soccer games and bedtime stories, always "In a minute" or "Later" when asked to play. The years pass, and many are left to wonder why their kids don't seem to make time for THEM any more. The Legend and Charm of The Tooth Fairy The legend and myth of the Tooth Fairy is a delightful part of our modern family culture. Kids dream about receiving a special gift or money from this charming, magical fairy. Adults fondly remember the Tooth Fairy as a wonderful childhood fantasy of their youth, and they pass on the mystery and charm to their own young children. Parenting Your Teenager: Ask Questions Many parents seem to be more than a little confused about what they have a right to know about their teens. Because Every Child Is A Born Genuis Graphology for Child development.:- Graphology is the science of understanding the human mind through person's handwriting. When a person writes, the signal in the form of letters get decoded / printed on the paper by the fingers. Graphology aims at understanding & interpreting these signals through the writing. Using this we can know a persons mind so the thoughts, character and behavior. What Do You Do When Your Child is Smarter than You? We adopted our first child when he was three months old. When we went to the agency to get him, he promptly stood up on my wife's lap and looked out the window. He was robust and happy, sleeping through the night from the beginning. In fact he was such an easy baby that we really wondered why parenting was considered to be such an ordeal. We found out later. In fact he was such an ideal baby that we assumed all were the same. Not so. Our second had colic and didn't sleep through the night for nearly two years. Are You Addicted to Your Children? Is it possible to be using our children addictively? Communications for Family Emergencies You know that children can get into trouble. The older they get, the bigger the problem as history would have it. To keep your teens safer you undoubtedly have already issued the cell phones to keep in touch, especially in the event of an emergency. Help Your Kids Learn More About Managing Their Personal Economy Remember when cash was a tangible commodity in all of our personal economies? As kids, we went to the bank, shopped with our parents and frequently watched them pay with cash. Now with cash on the endangered species list, today's kids see their personal economic situation much differently. As we enjoy the convenience of charge cards, stored value cards, debit cards and ATM cards, the challenge of teaching kids about an invisible commodity like money is magnified. If you're searching for ways to teach your kids more about what makes up their personal economy, including the importance of saving and how to set and reach their financial goals, here are some practical tips. Confident Children - Avoid Overparenting For many years underparenting was perhaps the biggest problem facing children. The Most Innovative New Approach for ADHD, a Natural Remedy What's new and effective in the treatment of Attention problems? A powerful intervention that is clinically tested with computerized testing, not merely parent reports, has been available to the public since 1997, but is little known. Understanding The Report "No thank you. Don't bother to send me the report about the testing results. I won't understand it anyway. I'll just listen at the meeting." Educational Toys - How Do Parents Choose The Best Toys For Their Child The choices are mind numbing. Walk into any toy store or the toy section of any department store and there are shelves and tiers of toys labeled 'educational toys'. There are books, games, dolls and the list just goes on and on. It includes everything from an infant's building blocks to Leapfrog interactive games. The sheer variety is overwhelming. How does a parent or a grandparent choose the best educational toys for the children in their lives? Will the child like it? Will it hold up under the abuse of play? Will it accomplish the purposes for which it was purchased? And finally, is it a good value for the money? COMMITMENT: Teaching Children the Lessons of a Lifetime It's been said, time and again, that for a child to learn what is most important, he must be shown the lessons through example, not through words. And, if we are to nurture certain traits within our children, we must first develop those traits in ourselves. Defrazzle with a Hearty Guffaw "The best blush to use is laughter: It put roses in your cheeks and in your soul." Who Are You When the Professional In You Meets Baby? Are you a professional? |
© Athifea Distribution LLC - 2013 |