Reading novels is great, but reading isn’t just about stories. Cookbooks offer children a wonderfully fun experience trying out new skills and tasting new foods. They also offer children a great literacy experience, since cookbooks are full of instructions that children must follow carefully if they want the food to turn out well. This creates careful readers, who read and re-read instructions to ensure no mistakes are made. It's great practice for young readers, and if you're lucky they might even let you have a taste of their final products. The trick though is to find just the right cookbook to entice your child to roll up their sleeves and get into the kitchen.
Here are five wonderful cookbooks for kids:
The Cookbook for Kids: Great Recipes for Kids Who Love to Cook by Lisa Atwood
This book is from Williams-Sonoma, the upscale cookwares company, but the recipes are anything but frou-frou. Kids will love creating hip dishes with this book.
Pinkalicious Cupcake Cookbook by Victoria Kann
If your children love this character, this cookbook will be an instant hit!
The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook: Sweet Treats for the Geek in All of Us by Rosanna Pinsino.
This YouTube Star is a favorite with my kids, and her bright fun cookbook is just as much fun as her videos.
Cooking Rocks! 30-Minute Meals for Kids by Rachael Ray
The best part of this book is that the recipes are divided up by age so that as your chef becomes more experienced the recipe and reading gets harder.
American Girl Cooking: Recipes for Delicious Snacks, Meals, and More by Williams-Sonoma
The kitchens of Williams-Sonoma teamed up with American Girl to write this book for American Girl Doll Fans. If you have one in your house like I have in mine, you know how loyal they are. Use that loyalty to cook up some reading in the kitchen with this great cookbook.
Do you have a favorite cookbook for kids at your house? Tell us all about it on Scholastic Parents Facebook page!
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Check out bloggers Amy Mascott and Allie McDonald's book, Raising a Rock-Star Reader: 75 Quick Tips for Helping Your Child Develop a Lifelong Love for Reading. Get expert advice and learn new strategies for your young readers.
