With our  gingerbread men lesson the focus is body image and the ginger plant with the ginger root. At a young age children have to learn the different parts of the body as well as spatial orientation, which is basically their position in the space around them.  It is very important to learn about the left and right side of their bodies. We also take a ginger plant to the class to show them the ginger root. We pass the ginger root around and let them feel the texture of the skin, the light brown colour, and let them smell the pungent smell that the root gives off.  We roll out the dough and use cutters to make the cookies, then bake and decorate them. A great benefit of this lesson is also creativity when the children decorate the little men.

Ingredients

Gingerbread cookies
230 g butter (softened)
2 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
2 cups of sugar
5 tsp ginger (according to taste)
2 eggs
1/2 cup golden syrup
4-5 cups of cake flour
Pinch of salt (1/2 tsp)

Children love cutting out gingerbread men shapes!

Method for Gingerbread Men Cookies

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.

Dough
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and mix well. Next, add golden syrup and mix well. Sift all the dry ingredients together, add to the butter mixture and mix well.

Let the dough rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Roll out the fough for the gingerbread men, or roll the dough into balls and flatten for the cookies. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 180°C.

When the gingerbread men are cooled down, we usually decorate them by putting a bit of runny icing sugar on for eyes and buttons, and put a jelly tot or other sweet on the icing sugar.

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