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Lesson Plan October 1, 2026Learning Clubhouse
Classroom Store Lesson Plan: Preschool Economy Grid
Introduce early financial concepts with this weekly classroom store lesson plan. It includes daily activities to teach preschoolers about currency, trading, and running a pretend market.
Theme: The Classroom Market & Little Entrepreneurs
Week of: ____________________ Lead Teacher: ____________________
Learning Goals
- Math: Count play money, sort coins, and practice one-to-one correspondence.
- Social-Emotional: Practice taking turns, sharing roles (cashier/customer), and polite interactions.
- Language/Literacy: Introduce financial vocabulary (price, buy, sell, trade, currency, receipt).
- Science: Observe how different materials (metal coins vs. paper bills) feel and weigh.
Materials Needed
- Play money (coins and paper bills) or plastic tokens
- Toy cash register, pretend scanners, and shopping baskets
- Empty, clean food cartons, boxes, and plastic fruit for the "store" inventory
- Blank stickers or paper for price tags, and washable markers
Weekly Activity Grid
| Day | Circle Time & Read-Aloud | Math & Science | Language & Literacy | Creative Arts & Sensory | Physical & Outdoor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Introduce the store concept. Read: The Penny Pot. | Math: Sorting coins by size and color into different cups. | Literacy: Brainstorm and write a class list of things we buy at the grocery store. | Sensory: Digging for "buried treasure" (plastic coins hidden in a sand bin). | Physical: Shopping cart relay races across the playground. |
| Tuesday | Discuss roles: Cashier vs. Customer. Read: Curious George Saves His Pennies. | Science: Sink or float experiment using metal coins and paper bills. | Language: Role-play greeting customers ("Hello, how can I help you today?"). | Arts: Decorate paper "wallets" using construction paper and stickers. | Outdoor: "Coin Toss" target practice into hula hoops. |
| Wednesday | Talk about pricing. How do we know what something costs? Read: A Dollar, A Penny, How Much and How Many? | Math: Assigning 1, 2, or 3 dot stickers to items to represent their "price" in tokens. | Literacy: Tracing numbers on large price tags for the classroom store. | Sensory: Washing "dirty" plastic coins in a soapy water table. | Physical: Red Light, Green Light (Stop and Go shopping game). |
| Thursday | Grand Opening of the Classroom Store! Read: Lemonade in Winter. | Math: Counting out the exact number of tokens to match an item's price tag. | Language: "Reading" picture receipts and checking off items bought. | Arts: Designing a large "Open for Business" banner for the dramatic play area. | Outdoor: Setting up an outdoor "drive-thru" window with tricycles. |
| Friday | Review the week. What was our favorite thing to buy or sell? Read: Bunny Money. | Science: Coin rubbings with crayons to observe the textures and faces on coins. | Literacy: Story sequencing—putting the steps of "going shopping" in order. | Arts: Making "credit cards" out of cardboard and decorating them. | Physical: Obstacle course—carry a basket of groceries without dropping them! |
Teacher Notes & Observations
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