Kids and sharp knives?

I do a heap of cooking with nearly 3 year old DD1, this morning we were making quiches and she was chopping her ham with her butter knife and protesting loudly that it wasn't cutting good(her words) so I nearly passed her a sharp knife but then hessitated as how bad would I feel if she cut herself :o

Does anyone else let there littlies use sharp knives?? I know how to sharpen them so they are all very sharp

Just a little brag...she cracked 7 eggs without a single peice of shell going into the bowl :clap:

I have been contemplating this myself, DD1 likes cooking with me and uses her little knfe to attack the cheese at times, when she pretends to cut something tougher i have wondered if i should maybe start teaching her the correct way to hold, use and pass a sharp knife?

I have a kid safe knife, will check the brand for you, it has a serrated edge and they can saw through vegies and fruit. Dd1 does the carrots and cuts up her own fruit with them. I am in the kitchen with her but don't have to stand over her.

another who is thinking about this one - DD is obsessed with helping in the kitchen. "i help" and "i do" are all we hear when we're in the kitchen now! she wants to help with everything but obviously we have to limit it to what is safe for her.

i think the masterchef kids series used fancy knives that were sharp but kid safe.

I looked at the serrated kids knives online, but not being able to find one to 'see' I just looked in my drawer to find something similar. I started by giving her her knife and showing her how to use it as a proper knife, learning to keep her fingers out of the way. Then i gave her a serrated steak knife similar to the online ones to practice with.
She's quite competent now.
A GF of mine was horrified when I handed her the cake knife to cut her fifth birthday cake this year. She did a great job and served the cake, and then GF's (much older) girls wanted a turn too. DD explained the rules, and all was good. GF was astounded...then proceeded to ask me how she could teach her 8yo to use a knife at dinner time :wall: ...just give her one to have a crack! She said but what about the food that goes flying off the plate?....well she'll figure it out.

i also have a kids safe one like BR!

I would be interested to know the brands of the kid safe ones :)
Might start off showing Dd with her little knife then maybe a small steak knife or something, thanks for starting this thread hun :)

They are called kiddies food kutter, there is a website but she also goes around the markets and was at our local shopping centre in the holidays too.

Both girls help us in the kitchen and both of them will use knives. We dont stop them from using sharp knives, but instead focus on teaching them how to use them properly.
The girls know that the knives are used only in the kitchen, they know they are not allowed to touch them unless they are given to them first. When we do give them knives, we show them again how to use them, ask them to show us how to use them. Then we never take our eyes off the girls when they use them.
We use normal knives and the knives are pretty sharp. Actually normally the sharper the knife the less chance there is of injury because you are not using as much force when using a blunt knife.

Thanks for all the replies :D I have the perfect little serated knife for DD to use tonight when we do veggies for dinner :lol: can't believe I didn't think of that.
I'm off to have a look at the kid safe ones as I think she would love to have her own special knife for cooking :D

We have one of the kiddies food cutters too - it's fantastic. Cuts through raw veg no worries, but run it across your hand and it won't break the skin. I picked ours up at a farmer's market, but I'm sure the guy who sold it to us said they have a website for sales too.

Just ordered a kiddie kutter! Lucy is going to be soooo excited :dance:

I have child-safe knives too, but they are hard work. Easier to give Liebs a sharp knife and supervise, IMO. He knows to keep his fingers away from the sharp edge and we enjoy cutting together.

I know a lot of people think it's shocking, but it's about teaching risk awareness. Just like learning how to cross the road (something else Liebs thinks he can do all by himself - nearly!).

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I have a kid safe knife, will check the brand for you, it has a serrated edge and they can saw through vegies and fruit. Dd1 does the carrots and cuts up her own fruit with them. I am in the kitchen with her but don't have to stand over her.

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Saw these at a the Munchkins Market I was at on Sunday. They looked great. The demonstator was using the serrated edge across her palm, looked amazing.
I didn't get one..next time, they were around the $10 mark.

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I have child-safe knives too, but they are hard work. Easier to give Liebs a sharp knife and supervise, IMO. He knows to keep his fingers away from the sharp edge and we enjoy cutting together.

I know a lot of people think it's shocking, but it's about teaching risk awareness. .

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My DH's thoughts exactly.

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The demonstator was using the serrated edge across her palm, looked amazing.

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that scares the bejeepers out of me!! i know it was a point of showing the safety - but if a kid seen that, grabbed a knife that wasn't "kid safe" but looked similar, and did the same...

i am really in two minds about whether, in the long term, it's safer to get something like this, or just teach DD about safety with real knives and no "gimmicks".

The ones I have were only £2 each. And when I got them, when DS was asleep I ran them all over my hands and arms. It's useful to know that if an accident should occur, it won't IYKWIM. However, I would never let Liebs see that being done! That would be irresponsible. He still has to treat them as knives, therefore with respect.

I'm in two minds too - we've just started letting DD use our kitchen knives, but I'll admit I'm as nervous as heck about it as our knives are ultra-sharp chef's knives. DD is 9 years old but has an alarming tendency to be clumsy or off with the fairies!

I do like the idea of having a kid-safe knife in the house, but would never let on that it's anything but as sharp as the real ones.

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The ones I have were only £2 each. And when I got them, when DS was asleep I ran them all over my hands and arms. It's useful to know that if an accident should occur, it won't IYKWIM. However, I would never let Liebs see that being done! That would be irresponsible. He still has to treat them as knives, therefore with respect.

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it's more that it's done at kids markets and things - it's a great selling point, but anyone could see it - and that anyone could be an impressionable kid. i will remain torn on this one for a little while i think

I just told my mum I ordered DD a knife and she was horrified :rofl: she said what is wrong with the plastic ones from her play kitchen