Hot Cocoa Stand Dramatic Play for Preschool, Pre-k, and Kindergarten

Turning your pretend area into a hot cocoa stand is the perfect way to embrace the cold weather of winter! Students can practice so many math & literacy skills in this dramatic play setup, while they also develop social skills! The hot cocoa stand is engaging for students while they make hot cocoa, play in the winter activities area, and enjoy yummy treats.

You can purchase the Hot Cocoa Stand unit here! Grab these resources that would go great with this dramatic play: Winter Math & Literacy Centers, Winter STEM I Can Build, Snow & Ice Science Unit!

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Hot Cocoa Stand Dramatic Play

Hot Cocoa Stand! The kitchen area in the hot cocoa stand is my favorite part! It has so many fun features and accessories that my students just loved! You can always have less in your area, especially if your students are overwhelmed or dumping everything.

Checkout Stand! At the hot cocoa checkout stand, students will develop math skills while they count money, write receipts, and fill in the specials board. And don’t forget all the literacy skills they will be strengthening as they read the menu, take orders, and complete customer surveys!

Winter Activities! The Hot Cocoa Stand Dramatic Play comes with several printable winter activities students can do while they visit the hot cocoa stand. These activities and games are optional. Students can build a snowman (boxes or felt), construct a snow fort (with plastic cups), shovel snow (cotton balls), and complete a snowball toss. They can have a contest to see who can build the tallest snowman or snow fort. For the ground, you can use a tablecloth or a piece of white fabric. If you pick the fabric, you can wash it and use it the next year.

Up Close in the Hot Cocoa Stand

Hot Cocoa Visual Recipe! Included in the dramatic play unit is a visual recipe to show students how to make hot cocoa. This is great if the student has no background knowledge or needs a little reminding on the steps to make hot cocoa. These can be just printed off and for students to look at, or turned into an interactive recipe with students removing the steps as they complete them. The visual recipe is a good way to practice sequencing and following steps.

Making Hot Cocoa! The customer will complete an order form for their hot cocoa, and the barista will use it to prepare their order. I used pom poms with tongs for my hot cocoa mix, so students are building fine motor muscles while they play. I only fill the cocoa containers 1/3 to 1/2 full, and I would put even less if students were dumping everything. For toppings, I have candy canes, whipped cream, and syrup. Clean out real food containers and use them in the dramatic play area to immerse children in environmental print! The syrup bottle is an empty hand sanitizer squirt bottle that I filled with brown paint to make it look full. Next, add some fun toppings like sprinkles, chocolate chips, or spices. I used empty spice containers, and I put some of the real food inside. Then, hot glue the lid closed and hot glue the holes, so none comes out.

Environmental Print! One of the ways that I increase literacy in my dramatic play setups is by utilizing real food items so that students are surrounded by environmental print! You can ask families to bring in empty food containers so you get a variety of items that you may not use in your house. Plus, this allows different cultures to share their foods that not everyone may have at home.

Hot Cocoa Stand Treats! The treats at the hot cocoa stand are so yummy and simple to make yourself! I make my cookies from Model Magic and let the students make and decorate them. You can make donuts out of felt or cardboard. The cinnamon rolls are two pieces of brown felt laid on top of each other. Then, as I roll them up, I use hot glue to secure the felt. Hot glue the end and drizzle paint for frosting across the top.

Sizes & Colors! There is so much math in the hot cocoa stand dramatic play! Students will practice color identification and sorting of you use more than one color of tableware. I like to use two colors of everything, so students are matching the silverware to the plates. They will also be practicing sizes of items with the small, medium, and large cups for the hot cocoa. Another way that I sneak in size comparison is in the to-go bags. There are small and large bags, so students can decide which bag is best for each order.

Checkout Math! Your little learners will be developing more math skills when they work the checkout area at the hot cocoa stand. Students can use the number line to help them write receipts, count money, and make change. One-to-one correspondence, number identification, and number formation are just a few of the math skills that are incorporated in the checkout area.

Punch Card Count! There are punch cards included in the dramatic play pack, which are great for students to practice counting to 10 while they build fine motor strength, punching the holes. The pack also includes customer surveys that students can complete while practicing literacy and early reading skills.

Specials Board! The students can decide what the daily special is at the hot cocoa stand. This is a great way to encourage students to practice handwriting skills, number formation, and spelling words. If your students are very young, you can use the included word cards for the literacy part while students just write the price. Alternatively, if your students are older, they can use the word cards to copy the words onto the specials board or write them independently.

Winter Clothes & Gear! Putting winter clothes in the dramatic play area is an excellent way for students to practice putting on and taking off winter gear. This challenging life skill is not something students want to practice, but they won’t notice since they are simply playing pretend! I put out hats, gloves, mittens, boots, jackets, and scarves. You can make your own scarves from pieces of felt if you don’t have any in your room. Children will also be practicing sorting and matching when they pick out gloves and mittens. And don’t forget identifying left and right when they put on snow boots. And if your class loves taking care of babies, don’t forget to add babies and accessories for students to care for while they visit the hot cocoa stand.

Order & Eat at the Table! Create a table for students to eat their treats at! I just used a tablecloth with some fun napkins and a snowflake bowl to make it match the theme. I also added a high chair to my table so students could care for their babies at the hot cocoa stand.

Winter Activities at the Hot Cocoa Stand

Build the Snowman! There are printable snowman pieces included in the set, so students can build a snowman! Lots of size recognition and sorting are skills students will practice while they have fun! Before the hot cocoa stand opens, you can have students help you paint boxes white, or you can use felt for the body of your snowman. I added Velcro to my boxes. You will need to staple it to the boxes so it doesn’t pull off. Then, on the snowman pieces, add only a tiny amount of Velcro, so it doesn’t rip your snowman parts when students take them off.

Measuring the Snowman! Once students build a snowman, they can use the snowflake ruler to measure their snowman’s height. I taped the included snowflake circles to a yardstick so students can practice non-standard measurement in the dramatic play area. The class can have a contest to see who can make the tallest snowman.

Snow Fort Build & Measure! Add plastic cups to your winter activity area, so your children can practice STEM skills! They can build a snow fort and practice non-standard measurement by seeing how tall it is. Create the snowflake ruler by taping the included snowflake circles to a yardstick.

Shovel the Snow! Get a basket of cotton balls and a small snow shovel for students to scoop the snow. This is a wonderful way to help students burn extra energy, build core and shoulder muscles, develop wrist muscles and hand-eye coordination all while playing!

Weather & Contest Charts! Give students a science opportunity in the dramatic play area with this weather chart in the winter activities area. Students can look at the thermometer, write the temperature, and pick the weather for the day. Place your snow fort and snowman contest charts here too, so students can practice writing numbers and deciding greatest and least.

Turning your pretend area into a hot cocoa stand is a great way to sneak in math, literacy, science, and social skills into your students’ play! It would be a good theme for the winter and would work with many different holidays. I love adding in the winter activities, especially if it is too cold to go outside and enjoy the snow ir if you live somewhere warm and don’t have snow.

Grab these winter resources below!

Need more winter ideas? Check out these posts!

See everything in the hot cocoa stand in action here!

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