In Andy Williams’ classic Christmas song, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” he sings about many beautiful things that come with the holiday season: kids, jingle bells, mistletoe, parties, caroling, and more.

While we understand that he couldn’t sing about every favorite holiday activity, we wish he could have added just one more- baking cookies! In our humble opinion, baking cookies during the holiday season is a must. Okay, baking cookies any time of the year is a good idea.

If you have kids at home, baking cookies can sound like a fun activity, but then you may start to question your sanity as flour goes flying, eggshells end up in the batter, and a whole container of vanilla spills onto the floor.

You may feel like throwing in the towel. But take a deep breath and laugh through the mess. Because even though baking cookies with your kids often ends up messy and is more work than if you just did it alone, you and your kids will benefit from this.

We’re not just talking about the benefit of eating the fruits of your labors; there are other benefits as well. Keep reading to learn the benefits of simply baking cookies with your kids.

Why Bake Cookies with Your Kids?

(Gustavo Fring/Pexels)

Life Skills

Kids need life skills to thrive as adults. There are many ways in which life skills can be learned. You may be surprised to find out that baking cookies with your kids will help them develop certain life skills.

Follow Instructions

In baking, it is essential to follow the directions on the recipe to ensure that your cookies turn out right. Doing so teaches your child the importance of following instructions.

Following directions or instructions is a vital life skill that will benefit your child now and throughout life.

We all know a guy that doesn’t like to follow directions. He may have gotten lost a time or two or had a table that wasn’t put together quite right. Maybe this poor fellow doesn’t know how to follow directions because he never baked cookies as a kid. Don’t let that happen to your child.

Teamwork

If working with multiple children, there may be fights over whose turn it is to pour the flour, but as you teach them to take turns and work together, they’ll be learning the important life skill of teamwork.

Kitchen Safety

Don’t touch a hot pan, never put your fingers in a moving mixer, etc., are safety tips kids learn as they work together with you in the kitchen.

Clean Up

Most kids hate when it’s time to clean up. But, during the process of making cookies, children can learn that clean-up is simply one of the steps in the process.

Sharing

The first aspect of the life skill, sharing, goes back to teamwork and learning to work together. The other part of sharing is the joy we can find as we share some yummy cookies with our family or deliver cookies to someone in the neighborhood.

Patience

Waiting for cookies to be done can feel like an eternity to a little kid. But, as they wait, they learn that some things are worth waiting for. Patience is an extremely valuable life skill that will serve them well throughout their life.

Educational Skills

Reading

If your child is able, have them read the recipe out loud to you. This can help improve their reading skills. If your child is not yet reading, you can have them identify letters or numbers in the recipe.

Math

Recipes are a great way to learn or practice math skills, such as addition, fractions, or even multiplication (if you double or triple a recipe).

Science

Baking is the best form of science (at least in our opinion). Cookie baking is a series of chemical reactions. Your child can see how all ingredients combine and then change as they bake in the oven. The results are delicious.

Coordination

Stirring ingredients, rolling balls of dough, using a rolling pin, and decorating baked cookies are all great ways to improve your child’s coordination through baking.

Creativity

Creativity, and imagination are vital parts of a child’s life. As you bake cookies together, let them be creative with the size, shapes, and decorating of the cookies.

Stress Relief

Most adults can use a little stress relief now and then; kids can too. Baking cookies is one way to help unwind from the day and just live in the moment as we work with our hands and get creative.

Family Togetherness

Quality Time

There is no replacement for time spent with your kids. Studies suggest that kids who spend quality time with their families are less likely to engage in things such as drinking and smoking. Baking together is a great form of quality time.

Sense of Belonging

Making a child feel loved and wanted is important for their emotional, mental, and behavioral well-being. Simple things like working together in the kitchen can help your child feel important and connected to you.

Traditions

Traditions have been a part of human culture forever. Family traditions tie us to the generations that have come before us and give us a sense of identity.

If baking holiday cookies together hasn’t been a family tradition, start a new tradition. Who knows, maybe your great-grandchildren will still be making the same gourmet Christmas cookies recipe you make with your kids this year.

Memories

Creating happy memories with our children will strengthen our bond with them and give them something happy to look back on throughout their lives.

Although life is busy and baking with kids can get messy, we suggest giving it a try. Even if your cookies don’t turn out, the time spent together will be well worth it.

If your cookies do end up being inedible, just laugh it off together and order some gourmet cookies online. Once they are delivered, you can make memories playing board games, or putting up decorations as you enjoy your cookies.

Infographic

If you have children at home, baking cookies is an enjoyable hobby, but as flour flies everywhere and the container of vanilla spills onto the floor, you might start to doubt your sanity. Even though it takes more time and effort, both you and your children will benefit from baking.

6 Benefits of Kids Baking Cookies Infographic
 

Video

Why Bake Cookies with Your Kids?