Dramatic Play Mexican Restaurant

Why we need to create different types of dramatic play for our little ones

Dramatic play gives our little ones a safe place to act out the things that they see the adults in their lives doing every day. It gives them an opportunity to experiment and see how things work. 

Dramatic play helps children develop

Problem Solving Skills

Knowledge on how the real world works

Language Skills

Cooperation and Sharing with Others

Imagination

Creative Thinking

Our Mexican Restaurant

Our restaurant sits just outside of our home living center.

To go orders

Looking at menu and finding money to pay.

If you look in the back of the picture you will see the stove area and worktable to prepare the orders.

Food is served.

The day before the restaurant was up and running we asked the children thing that we would need for the restaurant.  The first thing they said was money.  So off they went to the writing area to make their own money.  

 Here is some of the money they made. 

You can find the printable for this dramatic play on Pre-K Pages

Make Your Own Play Food

We like to change up our dramatic play often, but sometimes it is hard to find the right material for the job.

The solution to the problem

Make your own play food by using Crayola mold magic. The ideas then become endless and your little ones will be given an opportunity to explore and learn all different types of occupations.

Here is what we did.

 We are in the process of creating a Mexican Restaurant, but could not find a variety of food.

What we used

 White model magic this way we could paint each piece to look like the real food.

 After each piece air dried we then used water colors to paint.

 If the play food had small parts like the salsa in top we then covered it with Elmer's white school glue.

 Create play and have fun!

Pet Clinic Dramatic Play

Dramatic play is an essential part of children's learning.  It allows children to develop skills in such areas as literacy, language, math, social emotional, cognitive, and writing.

Providing children with different types of dramatic play can be a challenging and time consuming.  Try to find one storage unit that can be changed easily without having to change the whole home living center.

   

This dramatic play stand is not in my home living center but rather right outside the area.  It allows me to be able to change out the role play theme easily and often to give children the opportunity to act out different types of life experiences.  

Here it is turned into a Vet Clinic.  Children can play on both sides of this unit to extend the play.  

Children negotiate what roles they will be playing.  Vet, customer, vet assistant and even groomers.

Writing in the dramatic play area happens naturally when providing signs and prescription pads on clip board. 

 Children learn to care for the animals by feeding them and walking them.

Props provided in the vet clinic where

Doctor Tools

Stuffed Animals (dogs, cats, lizards, turtles, mice, and snakes)

Dog Treats

Collars and Leashes

Food and Water Bowls

The Vet Clinic printable kit can be found on Vanessa Levin Pre-K Pages

 She has many other dramatic play themes to chose from.  They are easy and quick to use to transform you dramatic play space into something magical.

Teachers Pay Teachers

Teachers Notebook

More Pet ideas can be found from Learning and Teaching with Preschoolers in the Pet Shop lesson plan theme bundle, also available is a Lap Book to Big Book Doggy in the Window.

Teachers Pay Teachers

Teachers Notebook

Bernard Super Cuts Salon

We have turned our dramatic play area into a beauty salon

The children took turns being the beautician and the customer

Wash Station

We turned the kitchen sink into the hair washing station.  We had empty bottles of shampoo and conditioner and small towels that the children could wrap around their heads just like at the salons.

Drying Station 

We turned two bowls upside down and taped them to dry erasable board and placed two chairs under each one.

Waiting Area 

On the small table between the chairs we have hair magazines that they can look through before they have their hair done.

Receptions Desk 

This area if for making appointments and paying for products and services

Manicure Station 

The children used water color paints to paint one another finger nails.   

Shelves of Items to be used in the Bernard Super Cuts Salon

Price List 

Let the fun begin 



Classroom Management Dramatic Play Area

When it comes to the dramatic play and the idea of clean up, sometimes these two things just don’t go hand and hand.  I have tried giving: warnings that clean up is in five minutes, I have given the children in the dramatic play area extra time to clean up, but for what ever reason they have a hard time wanting to clean this area up.  I have even gone as far as having them sign a contract, (“I will clean up the playhouse.”)  And then have them sign it. This one does help but still not like I would like it to.  Oh and lets not forget making it a game.  Who can clean up the most or fastest.  Oh that would be the teacher, because they just want to watch.

                                  

Here is what I hear:

• I didn’t play in the playhouse; I just played with the money. (money is on the floor)

• It wasn’t me it was…

• I was only in there for a minute

• Will you help me?

One day one of the girls that we work with said what about if we give them a key, that way we know who has been in the playhouse and who needs to go back and clean before moving on to another area.  What a genius is all I have to say?  She came in with six key necklaces.  That way only six children can be in the playhouse at one time and they know that if they do not have a key on they can not go in the area.  The children remind one another.  

 

Also since we have started this their play seems to have more of collaborative play with one another. 

BIG Thanks to Rosa!

Dramatic Play Outdoors

Dramatic play areas are not just for indoor play time.  You can create areas outdoors for the children to enjoy dramatic play.

Find a large box from an appliance store and have the children paint it or you can even cover it with butcher paper.  Inside the large box create a scene, inside this box we created a window and placed x-ray pictures to represent a doctor’s office.  There’s a waiting area inside and office area set up inside the box.

X-ray pictures found from the Internet.

Eye chart to check the patients eyes with.

There is also a box of props for the children to turn into doctors and nurses with.

Veterinarian Prop Box

The children spent the day pretending to be veterinarians. We learned a lot of new vocabulary words with our prop box (stethoscope, vaccination, flea, tick, leash, kennel, groom, and collar). I enjoy bringing out different prop boxes to spark the imagination. Every time you bring out that box something new will come from it.

Here is what’s in our box

Roll Bandages, Disposable Masks, Small Stuffed Animals, Stethoscope, Pet Grooming Tools, Dog leash, Dog Collars, Dog Bones/Milk Bone Box, Cotton Swabs, Food/Water Bowls