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ABOUT COOKIE CUTTER WEEK
The first week in December is Cookie Cutter Week, a time to celebrate the many shapes of cookie cutters and to use them for making cookies. For the activities below, you will need a selection of different shaped cookie cutters. Look for them in store cookware aisles or kitchen stores (this time of year is great for finding holiday cookie cutters). Or check secondhand stores for possible cookie cutters in vintage shapes.
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COOKIE CUTTER ORNAMENTS (Art)
Help your child trace around cookie cutters on heavy paper and cut out the shapes. Have him decorate the shapes with crayons, markers, or colorful glued-on paper scraps. Or let him draw on sparkly designs with glitter glue pens. To complete, punch a hole at the top of each paper shape and tie on a loop of thread or yarn for hanging. |
COOKIE CUTTER PRINTING (Art)
Pour some tempera paint into an old pie tin or other shallow container. Set out construction paper and several cookie cutters. Then invite your child to make prints by dipping the cookie cutters into the paint, one at a time, and pressing them onto the paper.
Another Suggestion: Have your child make gift wrap by printing cookie cutter shapes on large pieces of paper, such as newspaper or tissue paper, or on brown paper bags.
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COOKIE CUTTER GAME (Matching)
Select five or six different shaped cookie cutters. Make a game board by arranging the cookie cutters on a large square of cardboard or heavy paper and tracing around each cookie cutter with a dark-colored fine-tip marker. Place the game board on a table and set out the cookie cutters. To play, challenge your child to place the cookie cutters on their matching outlines on the game board. |
COOKIE CUTTER STORY (Language)
Choose five or more different cookie cutters with familiar shapes, such as animal shapes. Sit at a table with your child and place the cookie cutters in a bag. Start telling a story with a sentence such as this: “Once upon a time there were five cookie cutter friends.” Take a cookie cutter out of the bag, place it on the table, and continue the story something like this: “The puppy cookie cutter said, ‘Bow-wow. Let’s go look for some bones.’” Then have your child take a cookie cutter out of the bag, place it on the table, and add another sentence or two to the story. Continue taking turns removing the cookie cutters and adding to the story until all the cutters have been placed on the table. Then bring the story to an end. Later, choose another set of cookie cutters and start a new story, if desired.
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PLAYDOUGH COOKIES (Small Muscle Development)
Invite your child to help you make playdough. In a large bowl, place the following ingredients: ½ cup salt, 1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, and 6-7 tablespoons water. Combine the ingredients with your hands, letting your child take turns with you, until the mixture is the consistency of pie dough. If you wish, tint the playdough by kneading in drops of food coloring. Give your child a portion of the playdough and have her roll it or pat it out on a flat surface. Then let her use cookie cutters to cut shapes out of the dough. When she has finished playing, store the dough in the refrigerator in a sturdy ziptop bag for future use.
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COOKIE CUTTERS (Music)
Tune: “Frere Jacques”
Cookie cutters, cookie cutters,
Oh, what fun! Oh, what fun!
Watch me making cookies,
Watch me making cookies,
One by one, one by one.
Cookie cutters, cookie cutters,
Oh, what fun! Oh, what fun!
Watch me making snowmen,
Watch me making stars,
One by one, one by one.
Heather McPhail
Sing the song with your child while making “Playdough Cookies,” above, or “Baked Cookies,” below. Each time you sing, substitute the name of cookies your child is making for “snowmen” and “stars.”
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BAKED COOKIES (Food Preparation)
Make or purchase cookie dough and roll it out on a cutting board. Let your child use desired kinds of cookie cutters to cut shapes out of the dough and help him place the shapes on a cookie sheet. Bake the cookies according to your recipe or package directions and allow them to cool. Then let your child decorate the cookies with a favorite glaze or frosting and colorful sprinkles. |
SNACKING FUN (Food Preparation)
Invite your child to use cookie cutters to make “fast food” treats. Help her cut shapes out of cheese slices, buttered toast, or leftover pizza. |
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