Teaching Kids to Cook

Hello everyone,
Parents always ask me when they drop off their kids at my school (sometimes I have 12 kids with knives!) how I do it. They are such nervous wrecks when they see their child with a knife. It's really very simple teaching kids how to cook. Here is my secret; relax...that's it.
Granted when your child or a room full of children have knives you have to be very careful and set very clear ground rules. When kids are using knives at my school they know the rules. When you are slicing and chopping, your eyes are only on your board, period. In the almost 5 years I've had my school I have had very few accidents and when I ask the child who might have nicked themselves why they think that happened they always say that they weren't being careful and rarely does it happen again. On the flip side if you are standing behind them and are such a nervous wreck, they become nervous and that can also become a problem.
This carries through to other parts of being in a kitchen. Let them experiment with seasonings and altering ingredients. Be relaxed and the process will become fun and you will set up a lifetime of kitchen enjoyment.
In good (relaxed) health,
Patty