No-Prep Ice-Cream Store Dramatic Play for Kids

Setting up an Ice-Cream Store Dramatic Play for Kids has never been easier. You only need two things. That’s right, two. And you already have them at home. If you’re at home with the kids and you need a quick and easy no-prep activity, then you’re going to love this one. Be prepared to eat ice-cream for days though, this idea was a huge hit with the kids.

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Dramatic play has so many benefits to a child’s development. Including self-regulation, conflict resolution, literacy and let’s not forget that it gives them a safe and much needed emotional outlet.

RELATED: 5 Reasons Dramatic Play Matters for Child Development

One of our favorite dramatic play setups has been our DIY Toddler Garden. I initially created this hack to save my flowers. My son loved pulling them out because he thought that he was helping me weed. After I created his own garden, he was able to plant and weed his own flowers as much as he wanted.

If your kids are a bit older, they’ll love the DIY Backyard Pirate Ship. It’s a STEM challenge, you have to see if your kids can build it themselves. If they succeed, they’ll have their own pirate ship where they can walk the plank and hoist the sail. Yes, the sail really does go up and down. How cool is that?

For more dramatic play ideas, check out the 8 Dramatic Play Ideas for Preschoolers from Kaplam.

Our Ice-Cream Shop

I still can’t believe how much my kids loved our at home ice-cream store. If I ate this much ice-cream in real life I would look like Violet Beauregard from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

The best part is that you probably already have everything you need to make your own ice-cream store. Ball pit balls (or balls of scrunched up paper) and plastic cups. That’s it. I’m lucky enough to have a play shop till, but I think a calculator would work wonderfully for this setup too.

We’ve been eating, learning our manners, our colors and most importantly (for my two little ones at the moment) learning to share. The last one is a work in progress.

Are you going to try Ice-Cream Store Dramatic Play for Kids? Don’t forget to pin the idea for later.