Organising cooking

Send home the Tasting and making permission slip to check for allergies, religious or cultural reasons why children may not be able to prepare or taste certain foods.

Put aside some time to show children how to wash their hands properly: wet hands with warm water; lather soap; wash between fingers, thumbs,

backs and palms of hands and wrists; rinse with water; dry all the parts of the hands,

thoroughly.

First

Plan for the children to work in pairs or small groups to reduce the amount of ingredients needed.

Buy the ingredients for the recipe. Check the date marks to make sure the food will be in-date when it is needed.

Store the ingredients correctly.

If necessary, partly prepare some ingredients before the cooking session, e.g. halve a pepper.

Ingredients

Check that all equipment is clean and in good working order.

Check the equipment is appropriate for the size of the children’s hands – you may need smaller knives and kitchen scissors.

Equipment

Organise your classroom. It is usually useful to have children sat in small groups around a table so they can share ingredients and equipment which can be placed in the middle.

Organise any adult help you may need, e.g. a teaching assistant, parent/carer volunteer. Make sure they are clear about the support you will need and your hygiene and safety expectations.

Cover the classroom tables with clean plastic cloths.

Arrange the equipment and ingredients on the tables.

Display the recipe – perhaps on an interactive whiteboard.

Your room

Explain to the children what they will be making. You could play a video of the recipe or talk though the recipe steps.

Demonstrate how to prepare the recipe ingredients. Emphasisedifferent techniques and how to work safely. Children could take it in turns to spot check each other.

Explain to the children how you want them to work. Will they share the preparation of each ingredient or do one recipe step each?

The children

It is important to get ready to cook so the food we make is safe to eat. We must all:

tie back long hair;

roll up long sleeves;

take off all jewellery (including watches);

put on an apron;

wash hands with warm, soapy water and dry them thoroughly.

Getting ready to cook

You need to sneeze or cough

Move away from the cooking area, blow your nose or cough and then wash your hands.

You need to use the toiletRemove your apron and leave it in the classroom. Go to the toilet. Wash your hands properly with soap and water. Dry your hands.

What to do if…