5 Ways To Engage Kids' Senses in the Kitchen

1. ​Touch

Making a salad? Little hands love to rip up lettuce and kale! Try using different types of leaves and having kids compare the differences in texture. For example, curly kale and dinosaur kale feel completely different! 

2. Smell

​Herb gardens are an awesome way for kiddos to use their sense of smell (and taste)! If you don't have access to an outdoor garden, try growing one indoors on a windowsill. Some great herbs to grow are mint, lemon balm, basil, oregano, sage, and rosemary. You can even do a scavenger hunt, with clues such as: find the plant that smells like gum or toothpaste (mint); find the plant that smells like sprite (lemon balm); and find the plant that smells like Italian food (oregano).  

3. Sight

It's important to eat a rainbow of fruits and veggies! Have your child sort the fruits and vegetables in your refrigerator by color and come up with a recipe that incorporates all the colors of the rainbow (red, orange/yellow, green, blue/purple, white/brown). For inspiration, check out this rainbow smoothie recipe:

4. Taste

Try using popcorn as a blank canvas for flavor! Explore the five flavor profiles with the following ingredients: spicy (cinnamon), salty (salt), sweet (honey), sour (lemon juice), and bitter (cocoa powder). You can also mix your own seasonings such as ranch, buffalo, cinnamon sugar, etc. 

5. Sound

Celebrate the joy of healthy eating with a good old fashioned carrot crunch! You can even crunch a variety of vegetables and compare the sound, or compare the crunchiness of carrots after being cooked for different lengths of time.