Kids in the Kitchen - The At-Home Educator

Last spring, the kids produced a series of cooking videos. We had originally planned to produce seven but completed four. My kids love cooking anyway, so the project was a great way to expand on an activity that they already enjoy. Together, the girls selected the dish for each episode, helped to plan the script, gathered and measured the ingredients, and demonstrated the recipe. We had intended for them to learn some video editing skills as well, but their parents had to figure that out first. The project also gave us the opportunity to share fun, kid-friendly recipes that our family has enjoyed for years.

The girls named their show Kids in the Kitchen, and as you can see from the intro, they have spent A LOT of time in the kitchen over the years.

The project was a great teaching tool on so many levels . . .

The girls learned the importance of planning, collaborating, scripting and stage set up. For the Southwestern Chili, we forgot to measure the spices beforehand, so we had to find a creative way to work them in and get them into the pot in as unawkward a manner as possible.
The project provided a fun venue to practice math skills and measuring.
Another lesson learned is that everyone makes mistakes; the bloopers are proof of that. Not so obvious, however, is that the video camera died while recording one of the episodes, and Daddy had to finish recording using his smart phone.
The project provided the opportunity to learn presenting and public speaking skills.
Expect the unexpected. My girls’ facial expressions (please see the blooper videos) when the telephone rang and the coo coo clock chimed in the middle of recording are priceless! We discussed how to prevent the same intrusions from happening in future recordings such as turning off the ringer and timing or pausing the recording when near the hour or half hour.
Be aware of your audience. Thirty seconds is a long time when the only action on the screen is Hannah scraping the cake batter into the pan. Hannah learned that lesson when previewing the raw footage. Laughingly, she admitted, “I didn’t realize that it took me that long to do that!”

In sum, project was a fun and memorable family learning experience. The episodes are a family treasure that we would like to share with you, We hope you enjoy them!

Premiere Episode – Lenten Wacky Cake