Give a Child a Mortar and Pestle: Sensory Smash and Crush

Thursday 30th August

Children love pounding and mashing.  

Do you provide your child with crushing and smashing experiences?  Have you used a mortar and pestle at home with your child?

Using a mortar and pestle is a good way to teach children about their food and it can also be a wonderful sensory experience. We find that using such tools harnesses the natural childhood schema of transforming – changing the state of a material. The repetitive actions of schematic play allow children to construct meaning in what they are doing. This activity allows children to explore natural materials and the ways in which we can transform them.  

The objective was for children to understand: 

+ They cannot tell how food tastes by how it looks.

+ They might like something today that they did not like yesterday.

+ Food ingredients do not always taste the same. Ingredients will taste differently depending upon the seasoning and combination of other ingredients.

+ Food can be transformed

+ Identify, compare, contrast and describe the five basic tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, salty and savoury) 

In our classroom, we have noticed a deep satisfaction when children pound and grind found items. The smells, colours and tastes of citrus-based foods, spices and herbs are enchanting, and children tend to gravitate toward these wonderful botanicals naturally. Today, we have set up a table activity that includes supermarket items with cinnamon sticks, sprigs of rosemary, bay leaves and in season fruit with grapefruit, lemons and oranges.

We began by allowing our children time to touch, feel and smell the items on the table before cutting open each fruit and encouraging the children to make comparisons between each fruit. “The grapefruit is bigger and darker.” Said Ava. “Wow…strong. Sour.” Said Michael as he took a bite into a lemon.

After we tasted and sensed the items in front of us we then used the mortar and pestle to mix in and crush them. After Wolfe and Vivienne had finished smashing the ingredients together, they smelt the mix of scents “Flowers in the bowl. Smell flowers.” Said Vivienne. “I can smell lemonade.” Replied Wolfe. “Cooking” Said Harry as he also had a go at smashing the ingredients together. Charlie chose to squeeze his lemons instead to see how it transformed into liquid.

Our children enjoyed the experience of crushing ingredients together and experiencing the results of their efforts. These lessons provide a background for young learners to develop their own intuitive sense of food and cooking, as well as promote enthusiasm for eating fresh fruits and vegetables. We believe that the fundamentals of taste and appreciation of ingredients are necessary before a novice cook starts using recipes. Once children have internalised how to manipulate flavours and use basic skills, they will be enthusiastic cooks.

We may extend on this experience of crushing and grounding with our hands by supplying children with a simple slab of rock with a round rock for a DIY mortar and pestle. This may be from a landscape store nearby and paired together with pebble rocks as another way of challenging children to use their hands in different ways and building our hand muscles.

We are also considering using other natural elements for crushing with edible flowers and petals to add to our craft area for art making. Links to food may include sharing aspects of herbalism with children by making our own spice combinations.

Let us know your thoughts.