How to nurture culinary curiosity in children at preschools and nurseries

KIDS&Co. • 26 August 2025 • 6 minutes of reading

How to nurture culinary curiosity in children at preschools and nurseries

Cooking Together with Children – How to Build Healthy Habits and Curiosity About Flavors?

Cooking together is more than just preparing meals. It’s an opportunity for learning, building family bonds, and developing children’s skills. Little chefs in action learn about flavors, smells, and colors, and also gain experiences that are crucial for their emotional, social, and health development.

Tasting as the First Cognitive Lesson in Children’s Nutrition

From an early age, children explore the world through their senses. Preparing meals at home can become an exciting adventure for them – from touching ingredients to recognizing smells, and even tasting new flavors. These culinary activities support the development of fine motor skills, teach patience, and build openness to new dishes.

Food Neophobia – Why Are Children Afraid of New Flavors?

Reluctance to try new foods between the ages of 2 and 6 is a natural phase – known as food neophobia. Children may react with fear, rejection, or strong emotions to new products. This is normal, but it’s important to gradually familiarize them with a variety of flavors and support them in exploring the culinary world.
Gradually introducing new dishes, colorful plate compositions, and cooking together help break barriers.

Read our article: How Can I Help My Child with Picky Eating?

A boy tasting a lemon, holding a half of a lemon in his hand and putting it into his mouth.

Cooking Together as a Way of Learning and Development

In the kitchen, children learn much more than just mixing ingredients. It’s about:

developing culinary and social skills,
practicing concentration and patience,
learning the value of healthy cooking,
exploring a variety of sensory stimuli.

Cooking together encourages children’s creativity and can even act as emotional therapy – it gives a sense of empowerment and boosts self-confidence.

Flavor Education at Home and in Preschool

Culinary activities for children work great not only at home but also in preschools. Thanks to them, children have the opportunity to:

try seasonal fruits and vegetables,
learn to recognize and name food products,
work together in groups and develop social skills,
explore family culinary traditions.

At KIDS&Co., we shape healthy eating habits. Through our GOOD FOOD by KIDS&Co. program, we carry out many educational activities – children learn what mindful eating looks like, discover new flavors, and participate in cooking workshops and campaigns promoting a healthy lifestyle. Little ones can take advantage of:

themed days of the week (“Cereal Week,” “Forest Flavors”),
tasting corners with samples of different products,
preschool gardens where children grow herbs and vegetables on their own,
cooking workshops during preschool excursions,
simple culinary activities – e.g., preparing salads, healthy desserts, or sandwich spreads.

Learn more about Mindful Eating in KIDS&Co. preschools and nurseries.

Culinary Challenges for Little Chefs

Little chefs in action are happy to take on culinary challenges – from baking cookies together to preparing simple salads. It’s important to gradually involve children in more complex tasks, such as:

measuring ingredients,
mixing dough,
decorating dishes,
choosing seasonal products while shopping.

Such culinary activities in nurseries and preschools allow children to gain new experiences, while parents and teachers observe their development and food preferences.

Three girls and a teacher sit at a preschool table learning about vegetables.

Fun Activities Supporting Children in Eating

To familiarize a child with new flavors, it’s worth introducing elements of fun. This way, eating becomes an interesting experience for the child, not a chore. Here are three ideas you can try at home:

Colorful Plate – prepare several fruits and vegetables in different colors, and the child arranges them into pictures on the plate (e.g., a rainbow, a face, or a house). In the end, they can try each element of their creation.
Taste Detective – the child closes their eyes and tries small pieces of different products. Their task is to guess what they just ate and describe the taste (e.g., sweet, sour, crunchy).
Baking Mini Buns Together – the child kneads the dough, picks toppings (e.g., herbs, sesame, cheese), and after baking, tries the results of their work. This is a great way to show that cooking together encourages trying new foods.

Shared Meals – The Art of Building Bonds

Nothing strengthens family bonds like shared meals. It’s not only an opportunity to try new flavors but also to talk, exchange emotions, and strengthen family relationships.

However, it’s important to remember that it’s not just about sitting at the table together, but also about how the meal is served. It’s best if the food is placed on the table in a shared set of dishes, and each family member serves themselves what they want. The child then observes that the parents reach for vegetables, salads, or grains – and although they may not choose them initially, over time, they will decide to try them as they get used to the sight and smell.

This approach gives the child a sense of freedom of choice, teaches respect for their own needs, and reduces the risk of resistance to new dishes. The absence of pressure makes shared meals a natural moment for discovering flavors, rather than a negotiation or struggle at the table.

Importantly, the tradition of shared meals is also continued in preschools. Shared meals in KIDS&Co. preschools teach children table manners, support the development of social skills, and show that eating is also a time for sharing and being together. Kids observe their peers and often decide to try products they previously avoided at home. Thanks to this experience, the child learns that eating is not just a duty, but also a pleasant, shared moment of the day.

Regular table rituals also teach:

food safety and table manners,
responsibility for meal preparation,
building healthy eating habits.

Conclusion

Cooking together as a way of learning is an investment in the child’s health, emotional development, and social skills. Through culinary activities, children learn to be open to new dishes, develop creativity, and gain skills that will benefit them in adulthood.

Each shared meal preparation is not only a practical lesson but also a way to build family bonds and develop curiosity about the world. That’s why it’s worth turning the kitchen into a place of experimentation, joy, and learning – because every meal can become the beginning of a great culinary adventure!

However, it’s important not to forget that preschools and nurseries also play a key role in this process. It’s there that children participate in shared meals every day, observe their peers, and learn to shape healthy eating habits in a fun and cooperative atmosphere. At KIDS&Co. preschools and nurseries, we support parents by developing children’s curiosity about flavors and teaching them that eating is a pleasure, not an obligation.

Learn more about the KIDS&Co. kindergarten and nursery program. Our facilities are located in the following cities:

Let’s meet!

We invite all of you to an individual meeting with the headteacher. This will be a great opportunity to find out about our educational offer, ask questions, and visit the kindergarten. You can book one visit for a given day.

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