Cooking Day ideas for OSHC
91 DIY activities for a cooking day at before and after school care or vacation care, usually run around 26 January or 25 April. Pick and mix, or build a balanced day in one click.
Algorithm Sandwich
Children write precise step-by-step instructions to make a sandwich, then an educator follows them literally.
Jungle Safari · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Animal Face Mini Pizzas
Children decorate mini pizza bases with toppings to look like jungle animal faces, then bake and eat them.
Bug Day · Cooking Day · Fruit and Veggie Day +2Ants on a Log Snack
Children make a classic bug-themed snack by filling celery sticks with spread and adding sultana ants.
Around the World Day · Japan Day · Lunar New Year +3Asian Cultures Food and Fun
Children try simple dishes, music and games from several Asian countries across one day, celebrating diversity in a hands-on way.
All About Australia Day · Aussie Outback Day · Cricket Day +2Australia Day Activity Mix
A relaxed program of Australian animal crafts, a damper-making session and backyard cricket gives children a hands-on day about life in Australia.
ANZAC Day · Cooking Day · Remembrance Day +2Bake ANZAC Biscuits
Children mix, roll and bake oat and golden syrup biscuits while learning why these biscuits are linked to ANZAC Day.
Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge · Café Day +1Baking Cookies
Children measure, mix and decorate their own cookies, practising maths and kitchen skills along the way.
Cooking Day · Café Day · Birthday for Everyone Day +1Biscuit Decorating
Children ice and decorate plain biscuits with sprinkles, creating colourful edible art.
Beach Day · Milk Day · Café Day +3Blended Fruit Milkshakes
Children help blend milk and fruit into fresh milkshakes, learning about healthy ingredients and simple kitchen skills.
Junior Chef Challenge · Science Week · Science Day +1Blind Taste Test Survey
Children blind taste-test three versions of one food, vote for a favourite and graph the group's results.
Big Kids Club · Cooking Day · Ice Cream Day +2Buddy Banana Nice Cream
Older children partner with younger ones to blend frozen bananas into a simple dairy-free 'nice cream'. Builds leadership and connection across ages.
Outdoor Explorers · Bug Day · Gross and Messy Day +2Bugs in Mud Cupcakes
Children decorate chocolate cupcakes with 'mud' icing and gummy worms poking out. A fun, slightly gross treat for an explorers' day.
Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge · Café Day +1Build a Burger Bar
Children assemble their own burgers from a toppings bar, choosing fillings and practising independence.
Taco Fiesta Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Build Your Own Tacos
Children choose fillings and assemble their own tacos, practising food skills and trying new flavours.
Rabbit Garden Day · Easter · Cooking Day +1Bunny Face Biscuits
Children decorate round biscuits as bunny faces with icing and simple toppings. A sweet treat for a garden day.
All About Australia Day · NAIDOC Week · Cooking Day +1Bush Foods Tasting Table
Children taste and smell native Australian foods like lemon myrtle, wattleseed and finger lime, and learn where they grow and who has known them longest.
Café Day · Cooking Day · Market Day +1Café Menu Design
Children design illustrated café menus with dish names, descriptions and prices, combining creative writing with art.
Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day · Café Day +2Chef Hat Design
Children make tall paper chef hats with a decorated band showing the name of their very own restaurant.
Café Day · Cooking Day · Market Day +3Children's Café
Children plan, prepare and serve simple snacks in their own pop-up café, taking turns as chefs, wait staff and customers.
Chocolate Day · Cooking Day · Fruit and Veggie Day +1Chocolate Dipped Fruit
Children dip fresh fruit into melted chocolate and let it set, making a simple treat to share.
Down on the Farm · Chocolate Day · Cooking Day +1Chocolate Haystacks
Children mix melted chocolate with crunchy noodles and spoon them into cups to set as haystack treats.
Christmas · Cooking Day · Christmas in July +1Christmas Lunch Together
Children help prepare and share a festive meal, setting the table and enjoying it as a group.
Cooking Day · Japan Day · Clay and Pottery Day +1Clay Sushi
Children model pretend sushi rolls and pieces from clay, practising shaping and colour.
Diwali · Cooking Day · Culture Celebration Day +1Coconut Ladoo Balls
Children mix and roll simple no-cook coconut sweets inspired by Diwali treats, then share them together.
Around the World Day · Harmony Day · Culture Celebration Day +2Country Food Tasting Table
Children sample small tastes of simple foods from different countries and share what they notice about flavours, textures and origins.
Around the World Day · Culture Celebration Day · Harmony Day +3Country of the Day Stations
Children rotate through stations to cook a simple dish, draw the flag and design an outfit inspired by the country of the day while its music plays.
Birthday for Everyone Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Cupcake Decorating Station
Children decorate plain cupcakes with icing and toppings for a shared celebration, practising fine motor skills.
Camp Out Day · Aussie Outback Day · All About Australia Day +2Damper Making
Children mix a simple damper dough and bake it, learning a classic Australian bush bread recipe.
Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day · Fashion Design Day +1Decorate Your Own Apron
Children use fabric markers to design a plain apron they can wear for cooking activities and take home.
Cooking Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Healthy Heart Day +2DIY Salad Cups
Children build their own salads in cups from a choice of chopped vegetables.
Cooking Day · Birthday for Everyone Day · Café Day +1Donut Decorating
Children decorate plain donuts with icing and sprinkles for a fun party treat.
Lunar New Year · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Dumpling Folding
Children fold simple dumplings using ready-made wrappers and a filling, learning a Lunar New Year food tradition.
Slime Lab Day · Sensory Day · Messy Play Day +1Edible Marshmallow Slime
Younger children knead melted marshmallows and cornflour into a soft, stretchy, taste-safe slime, perfect for groups who still put things in their mouths.
Torres Strait Islander Culture · NAIDOC Week · Reconciliation Week +1Exploring Coconuts
An educator opens a coconut while children observe, taste the water and scrape the flesh, learning how coconuts are used in Torres Strait Islander cooking.
All About Australia Day · Birthday for Everyone Day · Cooking Day +2Fairy Bread Making
Children butter bread and shake on colourful sprinkles to make a classic Australian party treat, practising simple food preparation skills.
Games Carnival Day · Athletics Carnival · Cooking Day +1Five Rings Biscuits
Children ice plain round biscuits in five ring colours and arrange them into the famous five-ring pattern. A sweet, simple treat for a games carnival.
Junior Chef Challenge · Fruit and Veggie Day · Cooking Day +2Fruit Kebab Plating
Children thread fruit onto blunt skewers and plate them creatively for a judging panel of educators.
Beach Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Summer Holidays +3Fruit Kebabs and Ice Blocks
Children thread fruit onto kebab sticks and pour juice into moulds for homemade ice blocks, creating cool healthy treats.
Cooking Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Healthy Heart Day +2Fruit Smoothie Making
Children choose fruit and help blend smoothies, learning about healthy drinks.
Gingerbread Day · Christmas · Christmas in July +2Gingerbread Decorating
Children decorate gingerbread people with icing and toppings, then share or take them home.
Gingerbread Day · Christmas · Christmas in July +3Gingerbread House Build
Children construct small houses from biscuits and icing, solving building problems as they go.
Rhyme Time Day · Cooking Day · Silly Stories Day +1Green Scrambled Eggs
Children help cook scrambled eggs coloured green with spinach or food colouring, inspired by silly rhyming stories.
Cooking Day · Taco Fiesta Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Healthy Nachos
Children layer corn chips with beans, salsa and cheese, then bake to make a healthier nachos.
Healthy Heart Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Cooking Day +2Healthy Snack Plate
Children build a snack plate with something from each food group and talk about balanced eating.
Friendship Day · Teddy Bears' Picnic · Cooking Day +1Heart Sandwiches
Children make sandwiches and cut them into heart shapes with cookie cutters to share.
Gardening Day · Farm to Table Day · Cooking Day +2Herb Planting
Children decorate a pot and plant a herb seedling to take home, learning how herbs are grown and used.
Pet Day · Kindness Day · Cooking Day +2Homemade Dog Biscuits
Children mix and bake simple oat and pumpkin dog biscuits to donate to a local animal shelter. Cooking with kindness built in.
World Bee Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Farm to Table Day +1Honey Tasting
Children taste and compare different honeys, describing their colours, smells and flavours and learning how bees make honey.
Ice Cream Day · Science Day · Cooking Day +3Ice Cream in a Bag
Children shake cream, sugar and vanilla in a bag surrounded by salted ice until it freezes into ice cream.
Torres Strait Islander Culture · NAIDOC Week · Cooking Day +1Island Scones and Coconut Pumpkin
Children help cook simple Island-style dishes, such as scones and pumpkin in coconut milk, ideally guided by a Torres Strait Islander community member or resource.
Art Attack Day · Café Day · Cooking Day +3Juice Mocktail Bar
Children mix fruit juices, sparkling water and chopped fruit into colourful mocktails, practising measuring and creating their own recipes.
Cooking Day · Winter Wonderland · Farm to Table Day +1Loaded Baked Potatoes
Children top baked potatoes from a toppings bar, perfect for a cold afternoon.
Life Skills Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Make Your Own Lunch
Children plan and prepare their own sandwich and snack, building independence in the kitchen.
Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge · Café Day +1Make Your Own Pizza
Each child tops a pizza base with their choice of sauce, cheese and toppings before it is baked.
Cooking Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Healthy Heart Day +1Make Your Own Wraps
Children fill wraps from a choice of simple fillings, building a healthy lunch themselves.
Winter Wonderland · Christmas · Christmas in July +1Marshmallow Snowmen
Children stack marshmallows onto a skewer or pop stick, then add pretzel arms and icing faces to make edible snowmen.
Around the World Day · Taco Fiesta Day · Culture Celebration Day +2Mexican Fiesta Day
Children enjoy a day of Mexican music, simple tacos and nachos, shaker making and a piñata, learning about Mexican celebrations along the way.
Pi Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Mini Pie Making
Children fill pastry cases with sweet or savoury fillings to make mini pies. A tasty pun for Pi Day.
Full Moon Night · Space Explorers · Mooncake Festival +1Moon Biscuit Snacks
Children decorate round biscuits with spread or icing to look like the moon, using a fork for craters.
Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day · Challenge Day +2Mystery Box Lunch Challenge
Teams open a mystery box of safe, simple ingredients and work together to create a lunch for a judging panel.
Farm to Table Day · Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day +1Mystery Ingredient Cook-Off
Teams receive a box of surprise ingredients and plan, prepare and present a simple dish to share.
Cooking Day · Healthy Heart Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1No-Bake Bliss Balls
Children mix and roll oats, dates and coconut into energy balls, a simple no-cook recipe.
Christmas · Cooking Day · Gingerbread Day +2Paint Your Own Festive Biscuits
Children paint plain iced biscuits with edible food colouring, creating festive designs they can eat or take home.
Cooking Day · Pancake Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Pancake Flipping
Children cook pancakes and practise flipping them with an educator's supervision.
Pancake Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Pancake Toppings Bar
Children help mix batter, watch pancakes cook and choose from a toppings bar. A Shrove Tuesday treat that builds cooking skills.
Panda Quest · Japan Day · Cooking Day +1Panda Rice Balls
Children shape cooked rice into balls and decorate them with nori to make panda faces. A tasty, creative snack.
Cooking Day · Pi Day · Puzzle Day +1Pizza Fraction Game
Children divide paper pizzas into fractions and match slices, making maths hands-on.
Junior Chef Challenge · Cooking Day · Café Day +1Pizza Scroll Making
Children spread sauce and cheese over dough, roll it up and slice it into scrolls ready for the oven.
Down on the Farm · Chocolate Day · Cooking Day +1Puffed Rice Haystacks
Children stir puffed rice cereal into melted chocolate and spoon out crunchy haystack treats.
Gardening Day · Farm to Table Day · Fruit and Veggie Day +1Quick Veggie and Herb Patch
Small groups plant spring onions, capsicum, cucumber, chives and mint in about half an hour, creating a patch they can harvest later.
Cooking Day · Rainbow Day · Birthday for Everyone Day +1Rainbow Cupcakes
Children make layered rainbow cupcakes with coloured batter and decorate them.
Rainbow Day · Fruit and Veggie Day · Cooking Day +1Rainbow Fruit Skewers
Children thread fruit onto skewers in rainbow order. A healthy and colourful snack.
Medieval Times · Knights and Fairies · Vikings Day +2Royal Feast Without Cutlery
Children set up a royal banquet hall and enjoy a shared feast of finger food, eating the medieval way without cutlery.
Cooking Day · All About Australia Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Savoury Scrolls
Children roll puff pastry with a yeast spread or pizza sauce and cheese, then slice and bake.
Aquatic Adventure · Under the Sea · Cooking Day +2Sea Creature Biscuit Decorating
Children ice plain biscuits to look like fish, turtles and other sea creatures, practising fine motor skills and creative design.
Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge · Book Week +2Service Cookbook
After each cooking session children write up and illustrate the recipe for a growing service cookbook.
Down on the Farm · Farm to Table Day · Milk Day +2Shake-Your-Own Butter
Children take turns shaking cream in jars until it turns into butter, then taste it on crackers and talk about where food comes from.
All About Australia Day · Harmony Day · Culture Celebration Day +2Shared Plate Culture Picnic
Children help prepare a few simple dishes from cultures in their families and community, then share them on a picnic rug together.
Cooking Day · Money Day · Life Skills Day +3Shop and Cook Afternoon Tea
A small group walks to a local shop to buy ingredients on a budget, then cooks their own afternoon tea.
Mooncake Festival · Cooking Day · Culture Celebration Day +1Simple Mooncake Making
Children press a simple dough and sweet filling into moulds to make mooncakes inspired by the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Father's Day · Cooking Day · Teddy Bears' PicnicSnack Roll Platter
Children assemble filled bread rolls with simple fillings, inspired by a backyard barbecue, to share at a special-person celebration.
Christmas · Around the World Day · Culture Celebration Day +1Spanish Celebration Day
Children learn how Spain celebrates the festive season, share tapas-style foods for lunch and help make churros with educators.
Science and Space · Space Explorers · Cooking Day +1Star Biscuits
Children roll out biscuit dough, cut star and moon shapes and bake them for a space-themed afternoon tea.
Cooking Day · Japan Day · Junior Chef Challenge +1Sushi Rolling
Children roll their own sushi with rice and simple fillings using bamboo mats.
Taco Fiesta Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Taco Bar
Children help chop soft toppings and set up a taco bar, then build their own taco for a shared lunch.
Teddy Bears' Picnic · Cooking Day · Junior Chef ChallengeTeddy Bear Cupcakes
Children decorate cupcakes with icing, small biscuits for ears and simple features to make teddy bear faces for a picnic treat.
Cooking Day · Japan Day · Fruit and Veggie Day +1Vegetarian Sushi Rolls
Children roll vegetarian sushi with rice and colourful vegetable fillings.
Gross and Messy Day · Cooking Day · Junior Chef Challenge +2Weird Food Combo Tasting
Children try unusual but safe food pairings, such as apple with cheese or popcorn with cinnamon, and rate each one.
Christmas in July · Cooking Day · Winter Wonderland +1Winter Feast Lunch
Children help prepare a shared roast-style or festive lunch, setting the table and enjoying it together.
Culture Celebration Day · Harmony Day · Around the World Day +1World Foods Tasting
Children taste simple foods from different cultures, ideally ones shared by local families, and talk about where they come from.
Cooking Day · Taco Fiesta Day · Ice Cream Day +2Yoghurt Cones and Lettuce Tacos
Children fill ice-cream cones with yoghurt and lettuce cups with taco fillings for a fun, healthy twist.