Bread baking day is always a popular day at the farm! Being a part of the production of a meal is important work for the children. Yes, they love to eat the warm bread with butter, but it means more when they have had a hand [literally] in making it! I love watching these small hands work the dough.
Kneading the dough requires hand strength and this is good exercise for small hands. We are always working on activities that strengthen a child’s hands and pincher grasp. It’s not a realistic expectation for a child to hold a pencil or crayon to write and draw if they don’t have hand strength. We do various activities throughout our daily and weekly rhythm to support hand strength. Here’s a great Waldorf article explaining the development of hand strength. Happy reading!
