5 Fun Community Helpers Activities
Easy ideas for fun and engaging Community Helpers interactive centers! Students use their knowledge and skills to become food truck owners, grocery store clerks, restaurant workers and more!
I love teaching about Community Helpers, but it can become a bit simplistic and monotonous in Kindergarten. So, I was determined to make our learning more engaging by using interactive centers to match our learning AND incorporate other learning skills.
We discussed all of these helpers in advance, including their roles and the tools they used for their jobs. Be sure to check out Community Helpers and Places digital no-prep mini-lessons for some easy content to get started!
Let’s get started with these centers we had so much fun with!
Restaurant Worker
This center was a real hit for those students who love to organize! They started with a basket full of the following items: cups, plates, cutlery, napkins, menus, plant, table cloth and a table setting diagram. They became restauranteurs or servers by using the diagram to set up a table for two guests. This was a great activity for following visual instructions, matching, and working together with peers.
Grocery Store Attendant
I am happy to say that this center was much more popular than I expected! Students worked as grocery store clerks by scanning the barcode of laminated food pictures. I printed out some fake barcodes I found on Canva, printed them out, and then glued them on the back of the photographs. (“Real” play food would be better, but I needed to keep things simple for time purposes.) Then I opened up a blank Google Sheets spreadsheet and attached our library scanner. Each time they scanned a barcode, it beeped like an actual checkout! Students loaded their purchases into a little basket and then returned them to the “store” for others to purchase. This activity was great for fine motor skills and learning to troubleshoot with devices.
Food Truck Attendant
Although it would have been much for fun to make real food, students had fun creating a menu for a food truck! They referenced a poster with sample foods to create their own menu with a mini letter board. I encouraged them to add their own ideas as well, and to add prices! This was making us all hungry by the end of the class! This worked well for letter recognition, letter matching, and was especially great for fine motor skills.
Post Office Worker
This center was one of the biggest hits for my students and the easiest to set up! I loaded a table with Amazon boxes, bubble envelopes, regular envelopes, paper, stuffing, styrofoam peanuts, tape, scissors and markers. They had so much fun “packaging” their mail with all of these materials. They could also use pre-prepared “mailing labels” taped on the inside of a plastic container.
Students were encouraged to pack the container with stuffing etc. to mimic a parcel and fill out a label using a dry-erase marker. There was a space design a stamp, and write the to and from information. After they were done creating their envelopes and parcels, they could put them in the mail truck (a bin with wheels) and wheel it around the library to “deliver” them. So much fun!
Drawing Bonus Center
If you need another center just in case, try a food drawing center. This tied into our learning about restaurants and food trucks, and was a real hit! Choose some food videos on Art for Kids Hub and create QR codes for students to scan with an iPad. Once they scan the code, they will be able to sit and draw as they watch the step-by-step tutorial. All you need to leave out is paper, pencils and colouring supplies!
Are your students really interested in people and places in your community? I created a resource for Unique Community Helpers Around the World that will be sure to intrigue and engage them!
I really hope these ideas will be a fun addition to your Community Helpers learning!
Jenn
