A hands-on culinary workshop for ‘the little chefs’

Energy Saturday 06/July/2019 20:30 PM
By: Times News Service

Muscat: A fun cooking class with safety tips for children was held on Thursday at the Children’s Museum.
The cooking workshop for children was organised by the Ministry of Heritage and Culture (MHC) and the Children First Association (CFA).
The workshop titled “The Little Chef” aimed to teach children about kitchen safety procedures, as well as to instill values like independence, helpfulness, and confidence in children.
Speaking to Times of Oman, Aseela Al Balushi, Director of Children’s Museum, said: “The workshop assures children that they are able to help in housekeeping.”
The children who attended the workshop were between the age of six and fourteen years old. The majority were Omanis, but there were also some kids from Egypt, and Pakistan.
Hanan is one of the parents who attended the workshop with her two children. When she was asked about what she thinks of “The Little Chef”, she said: “The workshop is really good for children to improve their self-confidence and interpersonal skills.
“It is a good way to use their free time to learn new skills. I am glad that this workshop met the expectations I set for it.”
Kamni is a Pakistani parent of two children who attended the workshop.
Kamni said: “The thing that grabbed my attention is that the kids were doing the tasks by themselves.
“It is my first time here in the Museum and I think it is a good place for kids to learn. My kids loved the shadow room.”
After asking Kamni if language is a barrier that may prevent her or her children from attending such workshops, she said: “For me, to understand Arabic is a problem. However, I want such workshops to be mixed between Omani people and expats because so much interaction will go on.”
Regarding the language issue, Kamni called for more English advertisements saying: “There are a lot of events which go on in the Children’s Museum library and they are posted in Arabic; therefore, I don’t get to know about them.”
Maisa Al Nabhani, an English language teacher, presented “The Little Chef” workshop along with her colleague Laila Al Busaidi.
Al Nabhani said: “It was amazing. It was easy to deal with the participants because I teach children at school too.
“I wanted to teach the children how to be independent. For example, if their parents were busy or not at home, they can use simple and safe tools to make their own food.
“The children loved what they made, and their favourite part was when they were asked to decorate their cupcakes. Children are creative. They like designing and decorating using colourful ingredients.