Engage your students in creative and thought-provoking play.
Dramatic play allows for so much creativity! All you need to do is set the stage, and the children do the rest of the work. You can encourage them to make price tags, as well as open and closed signs for their apple store. This activity is perfect for the fall when apples are in-season. If possible, visit a local orchard alongside of this activity to see how apples come to the store and what happens along the way. The children will take the reins by expanding the fiction , as the teacher takes a backseat and can be there to help resolve conflict to push the play back into a respectful and creative path as needed.
Materials
Table
Tablecloth
A couple of baskets
A Couple of Shopping baskets, or cloth bags
Cash register
Pretend play money
Apples, real or fake
Couple of apple books
Learning Outcomes
Domain
Social
Skills
Co-operation
Indicators:
Co-operating and sharing frequently
Instructions
Step 1:
Identify an area in your classroom or home to designate as your dramatic play area where you can set up the apple store. It is especially fun for children if you set up the area while the children are out of the classroom so you can stage a big reveal when they return!
Step 2:
Set up a small table with the tablecloth.
Step 3:
Set some baskets of apples out - you can categorize these by color, type, size or anything else you can think so.
Step 4:
Set up the cash register so it looks like a check out area of a store, using another table if necessary. Play money, shopping bags and "gift wrap" can also be fun touches to your check out area!
Step 5:
Incorporate several books in the book area about apples, growing apples, and different types of apples. Examples: Apple Picking Time by Michele Slawson, The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons, The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall
Playful Questions
What are some different types of apples?
Where do apples come from?
How much do you think apples cost?
What do apples taste like?
If a problem arises, How can we solve this?