The Candy Shoppe and Candy Currency Color Sorting Dramatic Play Restaurant Games
Two Preschool and Toddler dramatic play activities that use candy to encourage color skills, math skills, and following directions. Includes free printable activity pages to use with the activity.
Not all holiday candy is created equal… Some of it can be hard, yucky, and inedible then there are the pieces made out of chocolate. That leaves us with the dilemma of what to do with all that candy that isn’t chocolate.
Why not use it for the greater good and make an educational game out of it?
We play two versions of this game, one where each color of the candy is a different value of currency such as blue is 1.00, red is 2.00 and so on. The other game is where the candy is what is ordered and the customer orders a certain amount off the menu such as 2 blues and 1 red.
Version one: The Candy Currency
The first game we usually use fake plastic or felt food. The child or children running the restaurant will take the customer’s (usually me and the children that are not running the restaurant) order and prepare it. Then they will bring us a bill with what we owe. The customers will have to figure out what to pay based on the candy values they have and what they owe.
Version two: The Candy Shoppe
The Candy Shoppe is better for younger children such as preschoolers. First you will want to talk to them about not eating the candy, especially if it is hard and possibly a chocking hazard. For this game, if you have younger children playing, keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t get choked in case of sneaking some of the candy. Kids are weird and even though they know they didn’t like the candy, they will still stick it in their mouth just to reassure themselves that they did indeed not like the candy.
The set up for this game is a little different. I place a large bowl of mixed up candies in the middle of bowls that represent the colors in the candy. This will depend on the number of colors and kind of candy. This time we used four bowls to match the candy we were using. The child then sorts their goods into the matching bowl. This helps them learn that there is a preparation step that goes into running a restaurant. The food doesn’t already exist, it has to be made.
After they are finished sorting, the child hands out the menus. I have included a few different versions you can download and print to use if you like or you can make your own. The customer decides on an order number off the menu and the cook then fixes the customer’s order.
The Menus Download:
There are different types of menus in this download and each has a different way to play and involves different skills.
The Counting Menu – Each customer orders off the menu choosing how many of each color they want. Such as 3 reds, 2 blues, 5 yellows… The cook then has to count out the order onto their plate.
The Pattern Menu – The customer orders a number of the menu. The cook matches the pattern on the plate.
The Matching Menu – Similar to the Pattern Menu but they have to match the colors in the order.
Then there are two blank menus to create your own or the children to use to create their own for their restaurant.
This download is mostly Full Color and free to use for any daycare, church, school, personal, or home school use.
Suggestions, requests, questions, or comments?
Email: miniaturemasterminds@gmail.com
