Kids Cooking and Cookbook Blog

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After reading Sandra Beckwith’s email about “Blogging when you write children’s books” I searched for the book mentioned, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking by Vivian Kirkfield. The title sounded very familiar and I was quite sure I had it. And I did – an autographed print copy at that!

I remember being excited about receiving the book because it had lots of simple cooking ideas for children and lots of fun things to do with kids. After I received it, I realized the entire book was packed with activities and recipes for children that would help any parent, teacher or grandparent use with their young ones. I could see the real value in having this available. Here are the highlights:

Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking

Written by Vivian Kirkfield

Publisher: MoneyPenny Press, Ltd — 2010

Recommended for ages 2-5 (I’d say 3 -9)

Theme: Developing self-esteem through stories, crafting and cooking

Brief Synopsis:

Each chapter begins with a story that brings out a self-confidence/self-esteem skill in the child. Then there is an introduction to a book appropriate for the theme, a simple but fun craft, and a short healthy cooking recipe. Each of the six chapter has 15 or more book titles and summary suggestions, crafting projects, and cooking ideas. These are multi-sensory lessons that help children develop a sense of competency and understanding of their complex world of feelings while developing their sense of self-esteem.

One of my favorite chapters was on helping children express their feelings and entitled “I Am Really Mad Right Now“. One of the books introduced is Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. This prompted a seven year old in the introductory story to question whether he would be sent to bed without any supper, as Max in the story was, for doing a naughty thing. Activities include titles and summaries of books appropriate for this theme. Related crafts include sidewalk chalk, making a sundial, an animal flipbook, paper plate faces, popsicle puppets, picture book, musical study, and others. Recipes include creamsicle ice pops, ambrosia salad, apple pancakes, oatmeal mini cookies, applesauce cupcakes, minestrone soup, corn chowder, and others. Positive parental participation ideas are sprinkled throughout.

Why I like this book:

 It is very well organized.
There are titles and summaries of 100 books every young child needs to hear.
The cooking ideas are healthy, age-appropriate, and child-friendly.
It offers real life situations any parent can identify with.
Many activities would be appropriate for children older than 5 as well.

How a parent can use this book and related activites:

This will help parents and teachers easily choose books that are important for children to hear.
Gets parents and children interacting and valuing their time together while being productive.
There is a wide variety of learning opportunities that can increase the child’s level of healthy self-esteem and achievement.
Excellent resource for anyone working with young children.

So there you have it. I love it. It’s in my reference library.

Please comment below with your suggestion for what book you think should be included in a list of 100 Books Every Child Should Read.