DIY Kitchen Helper Stand | Tutorial + Free Plans
Throughout my journey as a health-conscious mom, these are some of the FAQ I receive:
How do you get your child to eat healthy food?
How do you have time to cook and make things from scratch?
Is there ANYTHING your son doesn’t like?
The answer is pretty simple actually- LET THEM EXPLORE. I am a huge fan of the Montessori style of learning. Montessori is child-centered, meaning that the parent creates an environment within the home that is safe for the child to explore on their own, freely + independently. This nurtures a child’s natural sense of curiosity & love for learning.
Here’s a personal example: when our son Koa showed interested in solids, we introduced them through the method of Baby-Led Weaning. We simply placed solids in front of him, and that was it! We trusted him to do the rest. This is the practice of infant self-feeding in which the child leads the way through this developmental milestone (versus the parents via spoons & puree’s). While there are many benefits from this approach, my personal favorite is the development of self-regulation: eating when you’re hungry, stopping when you’re full. This is an essential skill that sets the foundation for their eating habits as they grow.
While BLW is one way we have applied the Montessori approach to our kitchen, here is the real secret sauce now that he’s a toddler: a kitchen helper stand. The more our children help us in the kitchen, the more likely they will take interest in the food we make. YES, they will make a mess, YES things will break if they are made of glass, but life goes on! When we empower our children with important tasks like unloading the dishwasher, it can be very hard to not constantly intervene and correct if we weren’t trusted ourselves as children… but it is so worth it when we choose to do it anyways.
These kitchen stands can cost up to $200, so my husband & I decided to put together some free plans for you guys to build one yourself! Ours costed $30-40 and took four hours to make. Click the link below for the free downloadable plans! We want to see what you guys come up with, so tag me in your finished products @korimeloy and #rewildculture!
-Kori