Create a healthy and tasty orange dreamsicle frozen treat with preschool kids. To make this recipe, you'll need vanilla yogurt and a can of frozen concentrated orange juice. Have children help you measure out 2 cups of the vanilla yogurt and place it in a bowl. Place the frozen orange juice (slightly thawed) into the bowl of yogurt and allow students to take turns mixing the ingredients. Once the orange juice and the yogurt are fairly well blended, pour the mixture into paper cups. Insert a wooden craft stick into the center of the cups and set them in the freezer. Ask students to predict what will happen to the mixture upon placing it in the freezer. Once frozen, remove the treats from the cups and allow students to enjoy.
Make frozen treats that children can drink. Set out a blender, crushed ice cubes, fruit juice (orange, pineapple or coconut, perhaps) and pieces of diced up fruit, such as bananas, strawberries and pineapples. Ask children to predict what they will be making based on the items that you've set out. Have children help you measure 1/2 cup of crushed ice, 1/2 cup of juice and 1 cup of fruit. Have them place all of the items in the blender, put the lid on, and blend until smooth. Pour the mixture into small cups and allow the students to taste test. Ask if their predictions were correct. Combine the ingredients in different ways to come up with different recipes. Compare and contrast the results to determine which is the class favorite.
You don't need a big machine to make ice cream; you just need some rock salt, plastic bags, ice cubes and a few basic ingredients. Have children help you combine 1 cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of milk, 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract into a small zip-top bag and seal. Place 6 tbsp. of rock salt and ice inside a large zip-top bag. Place the small bag inside the large bag and seal the large bag closed. Ask children what they think will happen when the bags are shaken. Allow children to take turns shaking the bags. After about five minutes, the ingredients in the small bag will turn to ice cream. Allow children to taste what they have made. Add different toppings or make different flavors by adding cocoa powder or some pistachio pudding to the mix.
Make pudding pops with your preschoolers. Purchase a few different flavors of instant pudding and follow the directions on the side of the box to make the pudding (typically 2 cups of milk added to one package of pudding mix and mix together until creamy). Enlist the help of students to make the pudding and then have them scoop the pudding into small paper cups. Place wooden craft sticks in the center of the cups and set them in the freezer. Once frozen, engage children in a taste test. Blindfold children and allow them to taste the different pudding pops. Ask them if they can identify the flavors using only their sense of taste.