Kids Can be Awesome Helpers in the Kitchen, Guaranteed!

Kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen in many different ways.

For Christian nontraditional students looking to simplify life while finding time to study, help from kids may just be the ticket to your sanity (and grades).

I'm going to share with you various ways I've enlisted the help of a variety of my kids and grandkids to save time on cooking.

Kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen preparing food

Chopping things up

Two things most kids have in common is they love to experiment with a knife and they love to do damage with it.

Fortunately, Amazon to the rescue.

A quick search elicited a page with all kinds of knife sets for kids to learn these skills.

If you're worried about them getting cut, then make sure you get some gloves.

I make no money on those links but I will be visiting them and buying my little one a deluxe set of her own and some gloves, of course.

They are certainly cheaper than stitches.

There is a time investment upfront to instruct, correct, and supervise.

But the dividends in the time they will save you on doing it yourself will make it more than worth it.

In other words, you will have much better time management in the kitchen with their help.

I never bought any of those cool knives and gloves for any of my kids or grandkids, but I will for this great-niece I've had since she was 2 years-old.

She loves, loves, loves to help and, as with all the rest of them, I will teach her and then allow her to do so.

Gathering ingredients

Another way kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen is by gathering all ingredients you need and arranging them on the counter or bar.

This teaches them a lot about cooking and recipes.

Afterward, they can help by putting everything up.

This also teaches other skills like organization and the much-needed skill of when-you-get-something-out-put-it-back.

Unfortunately, this skill probably will not pass on to their bedrooms.

Wiping down surfaces

An important thing for kids to learn is the importance of keeping surfaces clean.

I like to start out with a clean sink and counter.

That way I don't have to worry if something gets dirty when put it down on the counter.

I would be disgusted thinking of biscuit dough laying in a partially dried mustard puddle from lunch.

Kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen by learning to wipe down surfaces prior to bringing out the mixing bowl and mixer for the cake they want to bake.

Then, they can clean up splatters.

Stirring pots

My little one (at the time of this writing, 6 years-old) loves to stir anything on the stove.

Give her a spoon, spatula, or whisk and she's in stirring heaven.

Of course, I've taught her to safely hold the cast iron skillet handle.

She's a big help when I'm trying to juggle many dishes at once.

Kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen with cleaning

Loading and unloading the dishwasher

Kids can be a massive help in the kitchen.

My little one has a 7:30 bedtime.

After tuck-in she almost always gets up and works at her desk until she's tired.

One night the dishes were stacked up from all day (and maybe even the from the night before).

I had hurt my back and I'd been putting off unloading the dishwasher and subsequently loading it.

She had been doing that chore for a couple of months but I didn't want to face doing anything in the kitchen til about 8pm.

I called her out and said, "I need you to unload the dishwasher for me, please."

She said, "YES!" like I'd told her she could get a new bike.

Then... now this is the departure from normal... I told her I needed her to LOAD it.

I encouraged her that she knew where everything goes from unloading it.

She did a fabulous job.

And to think, all I had to do was ask for the help I needed.

Hand-washing dishes

Also, kids can be awesome helpers in the kitchen with good old fashioned dish washing.

My little one loves hand washing dishes.

When she first started, she would sneak and do it when I was in the shower.

I could tell something was going on because my house was built in 1938 and the way the plumbing is, you lose hot water in the shower when the kitchen sink (which is nearer to the water heater) has the hot water on.

So, I'd come out of the bathroom and, sure enough, she had been washing dishes.

I mean, what kid doesn't love playing in the bubbles.

She did do a good job washing dishes and she was only about 4 years-old.

How can your kids be awesome helpers in the kitchen?

Ask for their thoughts on how they can help.

There may be things they particularly want to do and some they wouldn't.

Any help is better than none.

All you have to do is find what works for you and your family.

I hope this will give you some ideas to use with your own family.

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You've got this...

Mary Alice Hogue BS; MSW
Home Time Management Expert, Coach, and Speaker
Helping Christian Nontraditional Students Survive, Thrive, and Grow

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