My first year teaching at a school that focused on learning projects was an amazing experience. With a classroom budget for the first time ever and big dreams, I couldn’t wait to make learning fun and engaging. So fresh off the mark as a naive young teacher, I thought it would be a great idea to have first graders run their own restaurant. Though not everything ended up going according to plan, the kids loved it and learned a lot.
We began our unit by studying healthy foods and creating a menu for our restaurant. I thought we were keeping it simple with just two item choices. Looking back, I think I should have just had one as the students in the kitchen were a bit overwhelmed with two choices.
Another big component of our unit was comparing our country to other countries where there is food scarcity. Students were very interested in this and many continued this learning at home. A student ended up bringing in an article about a flood that had happened in Mozambique and how they were facing a food shortage because of it. The class decided we should use our restaurant to help raise money for the people affected by this disaster.
We took a field trip to a restaurant where we had organized with the staff to get a tour of how things ran there. The staff also let us interview them and ask questions about the kind of jobs involved with running a restaurant.
The students had learned about where some foods come from and did an extensive study on bees. They were therefore obsessed with bees so when it came time to name our restaurant the students chose Bumblebee Bistro.
We studied logos of popular restaurants and created our own logo which we then ironed onto our aprons. This was a disaster because I forgot the golden rule of iron-ons which is to print the image backwards, but anyway. Students made advertisements and sold tickets to the grand opening of our restaurant.
Before we touched any food, the kids needed a reminder about sanitary conditions. So we had a fun game about germs and hand washing. We also noticed the restaurant staff had hair nets and decided we better get some of those too.
Finally, we prepped the food the day before the grand opening. Students decided on shifts and jobs. And then it was time to open our doors. The classroom was completely remodeled into a restaurant. Desks were moved, cork-boards were restaurantified, and everything was decorated with our theme colors of black and yellow. While I did play a big role in the decoration choice, the students helped to put everything together. They created their own bee centerpieces with their work throughout the unit serving as the art throughout the restaurant.
I wish I could say the grand opening went off without a hitch, but that was not the case. As with any entrepreneurial venture, there are risks involved. First graders waiting tables and cooking, proved to not be the best business model. Orders were not recorded correctly, food was dropped, and the wait time for a table began to cause riots.
However, I learned from my mistakes. I did not stop the idea, but instead reflected with students on what went well and what didn’t. Then I tried it again the next year. Since then we’ve done more restaurants at my school. Even kindergarteners were able to pull it off, granted there was no choice on the menu and everyone got the same thing, but still it worked. Recently, I replicated this idea with third graders as we learned all about healthy food and opened up a Ghana themed restaurant. Each time I have done this project, I have learned along with the students and improved in my guidance of kids to lead to a successful opening.
But, having everything go perfectly is not the point of learning anyway. As you can see, a lot went into this unit. The students enjoyed themselves and I am sure they retained what they learned far longer than if they had looked at a powerpoint that contained the same information. So go ahead and give a big project a try. Taking risks is an important skill for both students and teachers to work on.
If you would like to replicate some of the things I did here are some helpful links:
Aprons:
Printable Iron-on paper for light colored fabric:
Printable Iron-on paper for dark colored fabric:
And in case you don’t have an iron. Here’s a teal one!
It will be more expensive to iron onto dark colored fabric so keep that in mind when considering color choices. Remember to print the image backwards!
If your budget doesn’t allow for the cost of aprons. You could just have the kids all wear the same color shirt. I recommend organizing this at least three weeks in advance and having kids bring in extras if they have multiple shirts of the desired color.
You could also consider buying shirts as they do end up cheaper than aprons.
Plain white shirts
Colored Shirts
Here’s a link for plates, napkins and cups for up to 50 guests
And here’s some table cloths
The students should create most of the decorations, but if you have a big classroom budget and want to add more cute things here are some ideas.
Bee headbands
Hanging bee decoration
Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great time serving up some fun in your next learning project!
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