Do you have a dollhouse center or area in your preschool classroom? When setting up learning centers in your classroom, you may want to consider adding a dollhouse. A dollhouse can easily be added to your dramatic play or block center.
Dollhouse Center
Adding a dollhouse to your classroom can help support the development of important oral language skills. As your little learners play with the people and act out familiar scenarios, they’ll be playing while they’re learning – it’s a win-win!
The dollhouse pictured above is from Melissa and Doug. I like this dollhouse because it folds up and takes up very little space when not in use. You can place the dollhouse on a shelf in your dramatic play or block center for easy access.
What do kids learn?
There are so many educational benefits of playing with a dollhouse! Here’s a brief list of just some of the benefits young children experience from playing with a dollhouse.
- Oral Language Skills
- Sharing
- Taking Turns
- Fine Motor Skills
- Creativity
Another benefit of this center is that it is open-ended so your little learners can feel free to talk and explore without the fear of being right or wrong.
Dollhouse Center Materials
Wood Doll House
Kitchen Furniture
Bedroom Furniture
Living Room Furniture
Bathroom Furniture
Caucasian Family
Asian Family
African American Family
Dolls
By manipulating dolls and using different voices to represent various family members, your students are imitating real world experiences and practicing oral language in fun, and meaningful ways.
It’s also important to provide your students with dolls that reflect different ethnicities and ages.
Above, I used a small No, David! plastic character (purchased from Scholastic) and a small football eraser. Kids love to retell the story of No, David! using the character and inexpensive erasers as props.
Young children love retelling familiar stories! Shown above is the part of the story No, David! where the main character, David chews with his mouth open. The meal in front of David and all the kitchen accessories are rubber erasers.
Cars can also help provide meaningful experiences that motivate children to talk and interact with their peers.
Teaching Trailblazers
Having a dollhouse in your classroom is awesome! But let’s face it, a dollhouse can’t make you a better teacher. The best place to discuss teaching best practices and get the support you need is in the Teaching Trailblazers. We have many printable lessons and on-demand video trainings to help you become the best teacher you can be! If you want to get on the waiting list for the Teaching Trailblazers, do it soon so you don’t miss the next open enrollment period!
These are really amazing resources. From Edmonton, Canada