Monthly Archives: December 2017

Let’s Get Cooking!

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The benefits to getting your picky-eating toddler in the kitchen!

Cooking with your little one can be so much fun and can help with picky eating! Having your child even in the kitchen while you are cutting veggies, fruits or making toast is a GREAT way to introduce them to new foods and give them a no-pressure look at what you are making! Kids in the kitchen get to SEE, SMELL, and TOUCH their food. It is a great time to label foods, actions (stir, cut, eat, cook, flip), talk about simple sequences (first cut, then cook), and kitchen safety (hot, sharp, adult-only)!

Here are some simple steps to get your toddler in the kitchen!

  1. Place your toddler in the kitchen with you! Booster seats or step stools are great for little ones to see what is happening on the counter. You can give your little one pretend food to “practice” with you if you are using heat or sharp knives. Talk about what you are making, the ingredients and the steps!
  2. Get little ones involved! Help your child make their snack plate, let them place foods onto plates and bowls to carry to the table. Give them a spoon to help you stir batters, butter knives to make toast or sandwiches, or place different fruits and veggies into your blender to make a smoothie!
  3. Start with something FUN and PREFERRED! Your picky eater likes anything tan? Try making toast together and getting out multiple spreads to try! Kids are much more likely to try something when they feel in control. If they get to choose the topping or help spread it on the toast, it may be more rewarding to eat. Cooking is great for experimenting and trying new things! Box brownies or cookies are great for cooking with toddlers! They usually require few ingredients and you can place each ingredient in a bowl for your toddler to pour into the big bowl and help you stir.
  4. Keep it simple! Your toddler likely does not yet have the attention to watch you make a gourmet meal, but may have the attention to make a snack or a simple pasta dish. Keep it simple so you and your toddler can enjoy your time together.
  5. Give choices! Let your child take some control with cooking! Deciding what kind of sandwich, pick the dip for veggies, or decide on fruits and veggies for smoothies! Cookie cutters are a fun way to change the shapes of sandwiches, jello, rice crispies or even sliced veggies!

Some fun, kid friendly recipes are below!

English Muffin Pizzas: http://acraftyspoonful.com/english-muffin-pizzas-simple-toddler-meals/

Ice Cream in a Bag: http://www.growingajeweledrose.com/2013/07/summer-fun-ice-cream-in-bag.html?m=1

Trail Mix: http://www.bsuperb.com/toddler-trail-mix/

Actor Misha Collins shares his adventures cooking with his son: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3pjP79-sJc

Jessie Delos Reyes, MA, CCC-SLP

Family Time: Helps kids grow!

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During the holiday season, many families have the pleasure of spending time together, increasing their daily family time. There are many fun family activities that you and your child can do to promote their cognitive development.

Winter scavenger hunt: Create a winter themed scavenger hunt around your home and outdoors.

  • Tip:
    • This is a great way for children to work on their picture concepts, matching skills, and helps them in making associations.
  • Activities:
    • Indoor Hunt: Hide items around your home related to winter and have your child find them (e.g. hat, coat, gloves).
    • Outdoor Hunt: Talk about the different things your child might see while walking outdoors during the winter (e.g. snow, snowmen, shovels). Go on a “hunt” to find these items while spending time outdoors.

Organization/ laundry: Have your child help you organize your home and take care of daily chores.

  • Tips:
    • This is great for categorization of colors or sizes.
    • Learning where items go around your home will help further develop spatial relationship knowledge.
  • Activities:
    • Turn this into guessing game around your house.
  • Examples:
    • Narrate what you are doing and have your child join along: “Hmm, I wonder where I should put away Jon’s toys.”
    • Make a mistake and have your child catch/correct it: “I should put the pillows away on the kitchen table.”

Singing songs: Singing songs is a great way to work on your child’s engagement and imitation songs.

  • Tip:
    • Using songs that your child has interest in will help maintain their attention span and further work on their engagement and imitation skills.
  • Activities:
    • Sing together: Listen to music around the house and in the car. Select music that your child shows interest in. Model singing and dancing along with the music.
    • Finger play songs with gestures (i.e. “If You’re Happy and You Know it”, “Wheels on the Bus”, “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”): Model gestures for the song and encourage your child to imitate the gestures. Use hand over hand assistance if needed to help your child imitate the gestures.

Pin up pictures: Put pictures around your child’s room or in your home to practice picture identification.

  • Tips:
    • This activity helps your child work on word associations and improve memory.
    • You can pick pictures of your family (especially those that you will see during the holiday season) or your child’s favorite things (e.g. favorite toy, blanket, food item).
  • Activities:
    • First go around the house and label the pictured items for your child (i.e. “Look, there is a picture of your train set.”). Point to the pictures while labeling them out loud, then start asking your child to label the pictures themselves.
    • Turn it into a game! After you feel your child can identify specific pictures ask your child to retrieve specific ones.

Winter crafts: Arts and crafts are a great way to engage with your child in creative ways. These activities help them practice their fine motor skills, their color concept knowledge, and their concept knowledge.

  • Tips:
    • Talk about the characteristics of the paint (e.g. the color, temperature).
    • Work on color identification. Label the colors for your child and have them work on labeling them independently.
    • Work on number identification. Count the cotton balls with your child. Have your child work on giving you “one” cotton ball at a time.
  • Activities:
    • Ice paint: Put food coloring into an ice tray with water and a popsicle stick. Freeze the “paint”. Once frozen, take tray out and have your child paint with it on paper
    • Painting the snow: Use food coloring and a spray bottle. Fill the spray bottle with a few drops of food coloring and water. Take the snow paint outdoors and have them spray the snow.
    • Cotton ball snow man: Draw the outline of a snow man on a piece of paper for your child. Have them glue cotton balls inside the snowman to make it look like snow.

Have a great winter season!

Rachel Weiser, MS, DT

Developmental Therapist

References:

http://dailymom.com/nurture/encouraging-cognitive-development-through-arts-and-crafts/

http://www.parents.com/toddlers-preschoolers/development/intellectual/toddler-development-activities/