Activity for children aged 2 years and above.
Equipment needed: Large bowl, large spoon, rolling pin, house cutter or other cutters and baking tray. We try to get the children counting the utensils and as well as naming them, helping with association and numeracy development.
Ingredients needed:
Mix flour margarine and sugar together, beat the egg and pour in, knead the mixture to make dough. Probably the children’s favourite part feeling dough mixture between their fingers. At the same timed watching and time copying other children and their nursery carers. At this point the nursery are asking the children how it feels encouraging the exploration of texture and feeling as well as developing their communication skills. It is then amusing to observe how they then try to teach each other and suggest they know what they are doing. You’ll probably notice them telling you what to do at home!
Roll out the dough to a thickness of around 2 cm then use your cutter to make the biscuits. The rolling of the dough involves a bit more focus and concentration from the children, however we find it amazing how the attitude of the children changes into a more focussed, artistic approach from the previous step in the messy making of the dough.
Grease a baking tray and place the biscuits on it, put the biscuits in the oven for 12 – 15 minutes on a heat of 350 degrees. The greasing of the tray and placing of the biscuits is something the children do themselves, always very proud and excited at what they have made and you can see this by how they point out to each other which biscuits are theirs. The placing in the oven of course done by the our Red House Carers.
Leave the biscuits to cool. The most frustrating part for our children, as you can guarantee they want to eat them immediately!
Throughout your activity you can talk about different things, shape, smell, weight, colour, texture. This will encourage your child to become engaged and involved in the activity.
This will help to further their development in a variety of ways; they will begin to make comparisons between quantities, show an awareness of similarities in the environment and understand that tools and equipment have to be used safely.
We hope you enjoy seeing how your child has learned to bake with their friends at the Red House.
An alternative activity can be carried out for children under 2 years, as they have a shorter attention span, but with the same fun outcome in seeing how your child has developed with their friends at the Red House.
Play dough – Use play dough in the same way using rolling pins cutters etc. Babies can manipulate the play dough and also use the tools. Some parents have told us their babies pass the play dough to them as way of asking them to be involved. This is all part of what we observe between their friends and carers while they are attending our nursery.
The exercise will help your baby to have a strong exploratory impulse and reach out and hold objects.