One gingerbread cookie, two hot chocolates, and a very important order for Teddy! This gingerbread bakery dramatic play printable pack gives kids everything they need on paper to start running their own little pretend bakery.
With colorful signs, menus, order pads, play money, and decorating activities, there are so many ways to keep the imaginary customers happy.
Set it up in a play kitchen, turn a small table into a bakery counter, or add it to a classroom dramatic play area for some festive fun. Children can take turns being the baker, server, and customer while making up their own stories. You might find yourself ordering quite a few pretend hot chocolates before closing time!
What’s Inside the Gingerbread Bakery Printable Pack?
The pack has matching green borders and cheerful gingerbread illustrations, so it’s easy to put together a little bakery that feels like a proper shop. There are pieces for setting the scene, taking orders, paying for treats, and getting creative with the pretend baking.
Bakery Signs
Start with the “Welcome to the Gingerbread Bakery!” sign, then let your little shopkeepers decide when it’s time to open. The matching open and closed signs are perfect for announcing that the bakery is ready for customers or taking a well-earned break.
There are also “Order Here” and “Baking in Progress” signs to help children organize their space. One end of the table could be the ordering counter, while the other becomes the kitchen where all the busy baking happens.
The daily special sign has a space for a picture, with matching cards showing a gingerbread cookie, gingerbread house, marshmallow, and hot chocolate. Add a hook-and-loop dot so children can swap the special whenever they like. Today might be hot chocolate day, but tomorrow the gingerbread houses could be the star of the menu!
Bakery Menu and Order Forms
The illustrated menu includes gingerbread cookies, gingerbread houses, marshmallows, and hot chocolate, with simple dollar prices beside them. Even children who aren’t reading yet can use the pictures to point to what they would like.
The larger order form has spaces beside the food pictures for children to record quantities or mark their choices. The smaller order pads include a customer line, pictures of the menu items, and a space for the total price.
Younger children can use ticks, circles, or their own pretend writing. Older children can write customer names, record how many items they need, and work out the bill. Both ways fit perfectly into the game.
Play Money and Role Badges
The printable play money comes in green and black-and-white designs, with blank spaces children can personalize or use to add their own values. Cut out a little stack and pop it into a toy cash register, tray, or small box.
The role badges include “Customer,” “Baker,” and “Server,” plus a blank badge for another job. Perhaps your bakery needs a manager, delivery driver, or someone whose very important job is checking that the pretend cookies are ready!
Attach the badges to aprons or shirts with a suitable clip, or stand them on the table to show who is doing each job.
Pretend Baking and Decorating Pages
The ingredient cards give children ideas for building their bakery treats. There are cards for gingerbread cookies, gingerbread houses, marshmallows, and hot chocolate, with pictured ingredients and circles to check off.
The gingerbread cookie card includes red and green buttons and a bow tie, while the house card includes candy canes, gumdrops, and sprinkles. Children can use craft materials or paper decorations to represent the ingredients as they prepare each order.
There are also large gingerbread person and house decorating pages, a marshmallow outline, and a colorful hot chocolate picture. The extra gingerbread character cutouts can be used to decorate the bakery counter or make little signs.
How to Set Up Your Pretend Gingerbread Bakery
You don’t need a big playroom or a fancy play kitchen for this activity. A small table, a few trays, and somewhere to display the signs are plenty to get started.
Print the pieces you want to use, put up the welcome sign, and choose a spot for the menu. Set out the order pads with pencils or washable dry-erase markers if you’ve laminated them. Add some play money and arrange the decorating pages in the baking area.
A child-sized apron, wooden spoon, rolling pin, mixing bowl, and empty bakery box can make the setup even more inviting. A baking tray becomes the place to arrange finished paper treats, while a basket makes a handy collection point for completed orders.
Keep the first setup simple. You can introduce the daily specials, extra decorating materials, and different jobs once children have started playing.
Printing and Laminating Tips
Print the signs, menu, badges, and play money on cardstock to make them sturdier. Regular printer paper works well for disposable order pads and any pages children want to decorate with glue.
For pieces you want to use over and over, laminate them before adding them to the play area. Cut out the smaller pieces first, laminate them with space between each one, then cut them out again, leaving a small sealed border around the edges.
Laminated order forms and ingredient cards can be used with washable dry-erase markers, then wiped clean for the next customer. Clear reusable dry-erase pockets are another easy option for the full-page activities.
If you laminate the gingerbread decorating pages, children can arrange loose decorations on top and start again with a new design. Keep some unlaminated copies available for anyone who wants to glue everything down and keep their finished creation.
When the bakery closes, store the smaller pieces in labeled envelopes or zippered pouches. Keep everything together in a folder so it’s ready for the next play session.
Fun Ways to Play With the Pack
Once the signs are up, there’s plenty of room for children to take the activity in their own direction. Here are a few ideas to get those first orders coming in.
Open a Bakery for Toys
Line up a few stuffed animals or dolls and let them become the customers. One might order a single cookie, while another needs enough hot chocolate for a whole teddy bear picnic.
This is a lovely option for a child playing independently, too. They can switch between the different voices and jobs as they take orders, prepare treats, and collect payment.
Take Turns Running the Shop
One child takes the orders, another prepares the treats, and someone else pays at the counter. Swap roles so everyone gets a chance to try a different part of the game.
If you’re joining in, a simple “What would you recommend today?” can get a whole conversation started. Let your little baker tell you what’s available and how their bakery works.
Create a Daily Special
Choose a picture for the daily special board and invent a little story around it. Has the baker made a fresh batch of gingerbread cookies? Is it a chilly day when every customer wants hot chocolate?
Children can announce the special to their customers, draw an extra advertisement, or decide how many portions are available before it sells out.
Decorate Custom Orders
Ask for a gingerbread person with two red buttons and a bow tie, or a house with three candy canes. Children can use the ingredient cards to help them remember what to add.
Use larger paper decorations for younger children, and supervise small craft materials such as buttons. All the craft “ingredients” belong in pretend treats.
Add a Little Bakery Math
Count the cookies on the tray, match one drink to each customer, or find out how many treats are needed for two teddy bears.
For children ready for addition, use the menu prices to work out a simple order. A $2 gingerbread cookie and a $2 hot chocolate cost $4 altogether. If you write values on the play money, children can practice finding the right amount to pay.
There’s no need to turn every order into a question. Follow their interest and let the counting happen naturally as part of running the shop.
What Children Can Practice Through Imaginary Play
A pretend bakery gives children lots of reasons to talk, listen, and share ideas. Asking for an order, explaining what’s on the menu, and checking what a customer wants all give them opportunities to practice conversation.
Playing with others also involves taking turns and working things out together. Who will be the baker first? What happens when two customers arrive at once? How can they share the rolling pin? These little situations make cooperation part of the story.
The order pads bring early writing into the play in a way that has a purpose. A scribble, a tick, a carefully written name, or a number all help children record something they need for their game. Menus and signs also show how print can be used in everyday life.
Handling paper money, drawing decorations, and arranging the little pieces offer fine motor practice, while counting orders introduces simple math. And throughout it all, children get to invent characters, solve pretend problems, and decide what happens next.
Download the Gingerbread Bakery Printable Pack PDF
Ready to open your own gingerbread bakery? Download the printable PDF below, choose the pages you’d like to use, and get your counter ready for its first customers.
Print a few favorite pieces for a quick activity, or use the signs, menu, role badges, order pads, and decorating pages together for a bigger dramatic play setup. With a little cardstock and some laminating, you can bring the bakery back out again and again.
More Pretend Play Activities for Kids
If your children enjoy setting up their own little shops and taking on different roles, explore more of our pretend play crafts and activities. A few simple props can be the start of a whole afternoon of stories, conversations, and imaginative fun.
- Dramatic Play Farmer’s Market
- Flower Shop Dramatic Play Free Printables
- Dramatic Play Apple Orchard
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- Fun Free Dentist Pretend Play Printables
More Gingerbread and Christmas Activities
Keep the gingerbread theme going with more gingerbread crafts, Christmas printables, and festive activities for kids. They’re lovely for adding to a classroom theme or keeping little hands busy at home.
- Rocking Gingerbread Man Craft
- DIY Gingerbread House Costume Tutorial
- Paper Plate Gingerbread Man Craft
- Paper Bag Gingerbread House Craft for Kids with Free Printable Template
If you enjoyed this gingerbread bakery printable pack, please share this post with a friend or save it to Pinterest for later. Another little baker might be ready to open for business!
