Cooking with a Child with Autism
Positive Reinforcement • December 17, 2022
Cooking with a Child with Autism
Cooking together can be an enjoyable way to connect with your child with autism while at the same time teaching a life skill. Cooking is a great way to promote independence and lay the foundation for independent living later. It’s also great for developing fine motor skills.
Tips for Starting to Teach Your Child with Autism How to Cook
- Safety first - No benefits of cooking together are worth putting your child at risk of being injured. So before ever setting foot in the kitchen with your child with the intent to cook together, you must consider what they are ready for. Make sure that sharp objects or hot surfaces are out of reach until the child is absolutely ready to be around them. Discuss the importance of following directions to stay safe in the kitchen.
- Incorporate their food preferences - Start with simple dishes they enjoy. If your child is one to enjoy a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch every day, start with teaching them how to make a sandwich for themselves.
- Use visuals or videos - If using a recipe, or even just teaching the simple steps to make a sandwich or a bowl of cereal, providing pictures as visual aids can be a huge help. YouTube videos are also a good idea. Or if you can’t find a video that lays out the steps as simply or explicitly as you need, make your own video! This way, your child can watch the dish be prepared from beginning to end as many times as they need.
- Prompt as necessary - When in the kitchen together, it’s the perfect time for you as the parent to practice your prompting. Remember, prompting is not always a verbal direction. As your child works to master a cooking skill, try giving a gestural prompt, like pointing, or a positional prompt, like strategically placing something they need for a next step in close proximity or line of sight. Sometimes your visual aids serve as prompts as well.
- Keep sensory issues in mind - Always consider the sensory experience when planning a cooking lesson for your child. If they are sensitive to certain smells or textures, you may want to avoid them altogether. On the other hand, these experiences could be used as a way to gently guide your child to overcome an aversion. Just be intentional yet flexible as you work to find what’s best for your child.
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