Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! I’m thinking of one class store. We’ll come up with a name for it together. I think they can handle the idea of it being pretend, so that at the end of the day all the purchased items must go back onto the shelf in the store. That will be easier (and more affordable!!) for me than having them keep their purchases, plus we can have a wider range of prices by including more “expensive” items.
Maybe we’ll do some whole-class store activities together (learning how to count the correct amount, learning how to make change, adding the price of 2 items together, etc.). Then during their independent centers time, perhaps one table group at a time can have their turn (10 min. or so) at the store. The groups are 3 or 4 students, and I could assign one student per day from each group to be the owner/cashier. That way within a week everyone would have a chance to be the cashier. Also this means only 2–3 students would actually be “shopping” at a given time, limiting wait time and crowding.
I love the idea of a penny cup. Also having a separate bank teller would be great – that way the students could exchange coins/bills if necessary, and could get more money if they run out (I’ll limit the number of times they can get more!).
Now I have to find a toy cash register somewhere…I wish I had some little shopping baskets…and xerox a ton of play money…I wonder if I need to laminate it – whew, lots of work! Should be fun though.
Keep the feedback/ideas comin’!