Your toddler will especially like to play at cooking if you play with him. He'll take your orders for food, cook the food, hand it to you, and hope you enjoy eating it. When you are feeling rested and energetic, you can help your child have some real cooking experiences. These cupboard shelves have traditionally been set aside in a part of the kitchen that is away from the range and heavy traffic. Not only pots and pans are included, but also wooden spoons for banging, soft and hard plastic containers and measuring spoons for shaking.
Kitchens are also great places for older pre-schoolers to learn.
The kitchen offers special opportunities for your child to learn how to follow directions. Having your child help locate the ingredients and put them back when you're done is a helpful pre-reading activity. Looking for hidden letters or words is a game you can play any time. The variations of this game are endless. If you are a coupon clipper, you may enjoy the coupon game in the grocery store, where you hand your child a coupon and ask her to bring back the item pictured.