This smores recipe for kids is the perfect way to work on sequencing, direction-following, fine motor skills, and more!
There’s just something about s’mores that instantly brings on the smiles — sticky fingers, melty chocolate, and the classic combo of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate makes it a kid (and grown-up) favorite!
Whether you’re planning a camping-themed week in the classroom, looking for fun ways to incorporate real-life experiences into therapy, or throwing a backyard campout party, our free printable Smores Recipe Activity Pack is here to bring the fun — no campfire required!
This pack is full of playful, functional, and hands-on learning opportunities. It includes:
🍫 A picture recipe that walks kids step-by-step through making s’mores — perfect for early readers or non-readers.
🔥 A cut-and-paste version of the recipe, allowing kids to practice sequencing, fine motor skills, and early literacy in a meaningful way.
🎨 Camping-themed coloring pages to spark creativity and keep kids engaged while working on pencil grasp and visual motor skills.
Whether you’re an occupational therapist using real-life tasks to target functional skills, a teacher looking for low-prep, thematic activities, or a parent planning some summer fun — this free smores recipe and activity pack is for you. Grab your marshmallows and let’s dive in!
Why Cooking With Kids Is So Great for Development
Cooking with kids isn’t just for making tasty treats — it’s actually packed with developmental benefits! When children participate in making recipes like s’mores (or any kid-friendly recipe), they’re practicing a wide variety of developmental skills in a hands-on, meaningful way.
Here are just a few areas of development that cooking activities can support:
🥣 Fine Motor Skills – Stirring, scooping, tearing, squeezing, cutting, and spreading are all excellent ways to strengthen the small muscles of the hands, build coordination, and improve hand strength — all important for handwriting, buttoning, and other everyday tasks.
🧠 Cognitive Skills – Following multi-step directions, sequencing steps in a recipe, measuring ingredients, and recalling what comes next all build memory, attention, and executive functioning.
📏 Math & Literacy – Reading picture recipes supports early literacy, and measuring ingredients gives kids a concrete way to understand size, volume, and numbers.
👃 Sensory Development – Cooking is a full sensory experience! Kids see, smell, touch, and taste the ingredients, which provides great sensory input and can help picky eaters engage with food in a low-pressure way.
🗣️ Language Development – Cooking together naturally builds vocabulary (e.g., ingredient names, action words) and provides a perfect opportunity to model and practice conversation, turn-taking, and asking for help.
🧘 Self-Regulation & Confidence – Following steps, waiting patiently, managing small frustrations, and seeing a task through to completion all help build confidence and self-regulation — plus the sense of accomplishment when they’re done is priceless!
Follow the smores recipe below to make your own!
This indoor smores recipe is a great way to incorporate a camping theme in your therapy room or classroom!
1 – Gather marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers.
2 – Place a marshmallow on ½ of a graham cracker
3 – Place graham cracker and marshmallow in the microwave for just a few seconds.
4 – Put a piece of chocolate on top of the marshmallow.
5 – Place another ½ of a graham cracker on top.
6 – Enjoy your s’more!
More fun camping themed activities for kids:
-Try our Happy Camper Obstacle Course after you finish the smores recipe above! Kids will love riding in the canoe, riding a horse, going fishing and more during this fun gross motor activity!
-This simple Fishing Craft for Kids is a great addition to your camping theme!
-Looking for fun ways to get outside during your therapy sessions? Check out these outdoor therapy activities!
-Check out our outdoor sensory motor scavenger hunt as another fun way to get moving outside!
-Looking for even more summer fun? Our classic backyard games for kids are the perfect thing! These nostalgic games will take you right back to your own childhood!
-We love this free printable smores craft – so cute!
