To do: Make cookies and let your child practice numeracy while measuring ingredients
Time: 30 minutes
Materials: Clearly labeled measuring spoons and cups + cookies ingredients below
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Measuring ingredients for a recipe is a fun way to practice numeracy and math while creating something delicious.

Incorporate simple number recognition by reading the numbers on bowls or cups, discuss fractions, or count and add while combining ingredients!

Today’s recipe to practice measuring is good old chocolate chip cookies. We chose the Nestle Toll House recipe, but grab a family favorite if you have one.

Chocolate chip cookies are to cook with children because you typically have all the ingredients around, the order of adding/mixing isn’t a huge deal, and everyone loves to eat the finished product!

Let’s get started.

Recipe to practice measuring: Chocolate Chip Cookies

From this Nestle Toll House recipe. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, then start putting your dough together!

1. To cater this recipe to let your child practice measuring, first get all the ingredients out on the table or counter. Set out measuring cups and measuring spoons.
2. Have two bowls ready, one for wet ingredients and one for dry. Reading from the recipe, tell your child what to measure, and which bowl to dump it in.

Dry Bowl:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Wet Bowl: Mix these 4 things first using an electric mixer:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add 2 large eggs, one at a time, and mix well. Then slowly stir in 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) chocolate chips, and 1 cup chopped nuts, if you’d like.

Next, and here’s a good activity for your younger child to join in, get a tablespoon ready to start forming the cookies on a baking sheet. Show your children how to spoon a small amount of dough, then push it off the spoon onto the baking sheet. Compare how some balls compare to others! Are some bigger, or more round?

As the first batch comes out of the oven, remember how the balls were different, and see what they look like now that they have baked! It can be a fun comparison game for the whole family.

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