Exploring and discovering are kindergarten readiness activities. The 5 senses have boundless opportunities for both of those, plus others such as vocabulary, communicating, comparing, making choices, and more. For taste, we can distinguish sweet, salty, sour and bitter. Here’s a fun activity to explore those that can keep a little one busy while adults are busy in the kitchen.
A tiny piece of lemon wakes up the taste buds for sour. A pretzel twists those salty sensors. A raisin is a small, sweet treat. Bitter is somewhat tricky, but a tiny bit of unsweetened chocolate or banana or grapefruit peel works for bitter. Once you’ve tasted these and talked about them, bake up a tasty treat. This adds even more learning such as following directions, reading a recipe, the science concepts of physical and chemical changes, how mixing and heat can change food and more. What taste sensation did your little one prefer? Quite surprisingly, it’s not always the sweet!