Cooking With Children: Life Skills, Maths & Confidence in the Kitchen

There’s something truly magical about seeing young children light up in the kitchen,  watching ingredients transform, noticing new smells, and proudly showing off their finished creations. At Pippa’s House Nursery, cooking with children is more than a fun activity; it’s an incredibly rich learning opportunity woven into our curriculum.

While many of our settings enjoy regular cooking sessions, our Reigate nursery takes it a step further with a dedicated weekly baking class. Children roll up their sleeves each week to make delicious treats like banana bread cupcakes, cheese straws, fruit muffins, bread twists, and more. These hands-on sessions are joyful, confidence-building, and packed with early learning benefits.

Let’s explore how kitchen play supports development across the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).

Fine Motor Skills: Strengthening Little Hands

Cooking requires children to use a wide variety of fine motor movements, all essential for handwriting, self-care, and everyday independence.

When children:

• scoop flour

• pour milk

• knead dough

• stir mixtures

• pinch toppings

• cut soft fruits with safety knives

…they are strengthening the small muscles in their hands and fingers.

These actions improve grip strength, hand–eye coordination, and overall dexterity. All crucial foundations for mark-making and writing.

Baking class provides consistent and varied opportunities to practise these movements in a fun and meaningful context.

Language Development: Recipes, Instructions & Conversation

The kitchen is a language-rich environment. Cooking with children encourages new vocabulary, turn-taking, and expressive communication.

Think of all the words children experience:

• whisk, fold, sprinkle, measure, melt

• sticky, smooth, soft, lumpy

• half, whole, empty, full

They also learn to follow step-by-step instructions, which builds listening skills and helps them understand sequencing, an important early literacy skill.

As practitioners talk to the children about what they’re doing, ask questions, narrate steps, and encourage descriptive language, communication skills flourish naturally.

Early Maths: Measuring, Counting & Comparing

Cooking is one of the easiest ways to weave maths into everyday learning, and the children don’t even realise they’re doing it!

During each cooking session, children explore:

• counting ingredients (“How many spoonfuls do we need?”)

• capacity (“Is the jug full or empty?”)

• comparison (“Which bowl has more mixture?”)

• time (“We need to bake them for 10 minutes.”)

• shape and size (“Let’s roll the dough into a ball.”)

These real-life experiences help children apply mathematical concepts in a meaningful, memorable way.

Confidence & Independence: Proud Moments in the Kitchen

Cooking gives children a sense of ownership, capability, and pride. Completing a recipe from start to finish, or even helping with just one step, boosts self-esteem.

Children also learn:

• to take turns

• to work as a team

• to solve simple problems

• to try new foods

• to be patient while waiting for results

And when those banana bread cupcakes finally come out of the oven? The pride on their faces says it all.

Cooking at Pippa’s House: A Recipe for Learning

Across our nurseries, cooking with children is a warm, enriching experience that supports:

• the EYFS curriculum

• sensory exploration

• independence

• healthy eating awareness

• real-world learning

We’re incredibly proud of how our nurseries champion this with their regular baking programme, giving children the space to learn, explore, and develop lifelong skills. All while having plenty of messy fun!

If you'd like to see our cooking sessions in action, we’d love to welcome you for a visit.