Cooking together can be a fun and easy way to spend quality time with your child. Cooking together can also be a gratifying learning experience for the family. Your child can not only discover new foods and learn about nutrition, they can develop their speech and language skills as well. While the benefits of cooking together are endless, perhaps the best part of this experience is sharing what you created together and seeing the look of pride and accomplishment on your child’s face!
Let’s Make a Snowman with these two kid-friendly cooking activities. Perfect to try on a cold winters’ day!
https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/62748/make-marshmallow-snowman/
https://www.martysmusings.net/marshmallow-snowman-craft-can-eat/#recipe
Below are some examples of how to make speech and language connections in this activity or other cooking activities:
- Sequencing: Talk about what to do first, next, last, before and after.
- Following Directions: Read through the recipe and have your child follow them as you go along.
- Articulation: Target specific speech sounds. For example, if your child is working on /s/ blends, emphasize words like snowman, stick, sticky, spread or if they are working on /k/ you can model words such as cook, cut, cookie, make, cake, and bake.
- Describing and Commenting: Use descriptive words such as gooey, sticky, messy, sweet, etc. You can even incorporate the five senses into the activity (e.g., It feels like_____? It smells like_____?) .
- Actions: Label your actions as you are cooking: measure, mix, spread, bake, stir, and pour.
- Answering “wh” questions: Ask them a variety of questions such as, “What do we need next?” “Where do we put the marshmallows?” “Why do we need a spoon?”
- Social skills: Encourage your child to take turns, request items or actions, and use basic manners