• Words: restaurant, menu, waiter, waitress, dollars

• Practicing politeness and sharing

• Practicing doing things in order (sequencing): What are the steps for eating in a restaurant?

• Practicing shapes, colors, and counting from 1 to 10

• Practicing using crayons and other school supplies

1. WHAT YOU NEED

"MATERIALS" FROM THIS WEB SITE:

• Pretend Dollars

• Shapes

• Colors

2. BEFORE YOU PLAY

• Ask children who will be the waiter (or waitress) and the birthday person. Take turns being each.
• Set up a table and chairs for the ‘restaurant.’
• Help children use crayons to make ‘menus,’ an ‘order pad’ and a ‘bill’ (using pretend writing).
• Print the Pretend Dollars, or make your own.
• Help children use Play Doh or clay to make a pretend birthday cake (or just make believe).

TELL THE STORY:
Let’s pretend it’s a birthday! We’ll have a birthday party at a restaurant, a place where we can go to eat and pay for our meal.

PLAY THE GAME: Pretend calling the restaurant to reserve a table.

1. Place-mats: Help children decorate place-mats for the party with crayons or markers. Ask them to name the colors and shapes in their drawings. (Use Colors and Shapes charts.)
2. Set the Table: Ask the waiter (or waitress) to set the table, and to count how many place-mats, plates, cups, napkins, knives, forks and spoons we need for the party. Ask the child to name the colors of each item.
3. Ordering: The birthday person and friend(s) arrive. The waiter seats them and gives them menus.
   The birthday person and friends order from the menu. The waiter says, “Thank you,” or “I’m sorry, we don’t have that.” The waiter ‘writes’ each person’s order on the ‘order pad’ (using pretend writing).
4. Eating: The waiter pretends to cook the food. The waiter serves the food. The birthday person and guests say, “Thank you.” The waiter says, “You’re welcome.” Children pretend to eat their meals.
5. Cake: The waiter brings our pretend birthday cake. Let’s count the candles. Make a wish, then pretend to cut and eat the cake. Ask the birthday person to share the pretend cake.
6. Paying: Ask children: “What happens next?”
   The waiter brings the ‘bill’ (pretend writing) and tells how much to pay: 10 dollars.
   The birthday person pays the waiter 10 Pretend Dollars, counting each dollar out loud.
   The waiter says, “Thank you.” The birthday person says, “You’re welcome.” The birthday person and friend(s) leave the restaurant.
7. Play the game again with a different child as the birthday person and the waiter or waitress.