Hot Chocolate for Sale!

Today was our first day back to preschool, following our Christmas vacation.  

I do hate to take down the Christmas decorations in the dramatic play area, but it has to be done so that we can do more fun things-like open a Hot Chocolate stand!

That is exactly what we did today.  We opened the SDS Hot Chocolate Shop!

We scooped "marshmallows"...

We found good reasons to write: to take orders, to write out a bill, to write checks...

We helped each other sound out words to make a sign.

The sign said, "Hot Chocolate for Sale".  

The sign became part of a traveling hot chocolate stand! The creativity and imagination that is alive in these children simply amazes me.  I placed cups, white pompoms, plastic spoons, straws, empty hot chocolate boxes, pens and paper and aprons in the dramatic play area, and look what they did!

They talked to each other, they engaged in extended, meaningful play, they purposefully worked with pens and paper, they interacted with numbers on the cash register, they measured and poured, stirred and mixed, improvised, solved their own problems, exercised their small muscles, and used their brains!

Speaking of improvising... there was only one waitress tray. Not a problem for my thinkers!  A just took the lid off of the train set and made her own tray.  Now, there are times when I purposefully limit the supplies to encourage sharing, however, this wasn't one of them. It does go to show you what children are capable of when you teach them to compromise, think, and improvise and then provide them with opportunities to practice the skills!

 

No one really curled up next to the "fire" to sip coco, but they accepted many of my other invitations to play and extended the play in directions that I had not even anticipated.  

I sure do love to see preschoolers writing for fun!