Turn your dramatic play center into a firehouse to help children learn about firefighters. Fill the center with firefighter costumes, including hats, boots and coats, toy fire trucks and toy dalmatians. Children can use blocks to build buildings. They can use jump ropes as fire hoses and use them to put out pretend fires.
Create a dramatic play center that allows children to pretend they are doctors and nurses. Provide children with white jackets and play scrubs to dress up as doctors and nurses. Offer toy stethoscopes, thermometers, clipboards and medical bags. Set out tongue depressors and empty medicine bottles. Children can pretend to treat other students pretending to be patients, or they can treat dolls and stuffed animals.
Postal workers are other community workers that you can teach children about through dramatic play. Stack empty boxes on top of one another to create mail slots. Set out mailboxes or create mailboxes from empty cardboard boxes. Stock the center with papers, envelopes, stamps and ink pads. Provide children with bags they can use to carry mail.
A restaurant is another idea for a dramatic play center during a study on community helpers. Set out tables and chairs in the center, as well as toy or paper plates, cutlery and glasses. Create menus from paper, or ask a local restaurant if they would be willing to donate a few menus. Include play food, trays, aprons and writing tablets. Children can pretend they are diners at a restaurant, as well as waiters and waitresses.