Hi Debbie,

I applaud you for trying to keep your learning centers meaningful for the children. It seems, though, as if you may be doing too much work in this regard. While you certainly want to rotate in new materials to keep children's interests piqued and to reflect current project work, you also want to maintain a sense of what is familiar and comforting. Children should know what is happening in each center and the types of play that go on there. They shouldn't be doing an art project in the cooking area or bringing a puzzle to the music and movement area.

Having said this, there are some exceptions. Books belong in every center, as long as they are related to the topic. For instance, books on art and artists compliment the art area and books on buildings are helpful to the block center. The same is true for writing. As noted in an earlier question, writing can naturally be included in dramatic play or in making signs for art or blocks.

To truly work as designed, you want to keep the purpose of each center clear. If children are taking materials from center to center, it is most likely because the purpose of the different centers is not clear to them. In my experience, one of two things is at work:

1. It is often the case that the center is not set up optimally. Are the materials in the center ones that enhance the learning center? Is the center inviting to children? Are materials and labels displayed so that children can get out and return things independently? Is there sufficient space for children to use the materials without bumping into other children or objects? Are children moving materials because they don't have enough room to use them as they like in the center where they are housed?

Take an objective look at your centers and see if there are some things you might do to improve the set-up and "tighten" them up. Make sure the materials that you have relate to learning goals in the area. If you can keep your centers neat and inviting, children should be drawn in to play.

2. The children may need a refresher course on how to use the centers. It might be helpful during a morning group time to talk about the centers with the children. Let them know that there seem to be some problems in using them--that you've noticed children taking materials from center to center. Go over the rules of using the centers with children, including the part about keeping materials in the center where they are found in and returning them when done. Cleaning up is a part of the play experience, so be sure that children understand they need to return whatever they have used to its labeled place on a shelf.

You may find that you want to work with children as they use the centers, reinforcing these procedures and breaking old habits. At the same time, it might be helpful at first to suggest some activities that you can do with children while playing in the centers. Challenge children to build a school out of blocks to write a book on the computer or to put on a skit in the dramatic play area. They may need some inspiration on the types of exciting explorations that occur in a particular center.

I am hopeful that if you try both of these things that your problem will disappear. Your goal is for children to become involved in high-levels of play in the learning center they choose. When this happens, children will have no need to be moving materials around.

I hope this helps, Debbie. Thank you for your long years of dedicated service to young children.

Hi Janet,

Here are some additional resources:

NAEYC's STEM Kit

The kit includes:

• The Young Child and Mathematics (2nd ed.)
• Ramps & Pathways: A Constructivist Approach to Physics with Young Children
• The Block Book (3rd ed.)
• Worms, Shadows, and Whirlpools: Science in the Early Childhood Classroom
• Spotlight on Young Children and Technology 
• Spotlight on Young Children: Exploring Math
• Spotlight on Young Children and Nature 
• Technology and Early Childhood Education - 2008 Institute Proceedings (DVD-ROM)
• Everyday Math Manipulatives (12"x36" Poster, laminated)
• Preschool Learning Centers (10-Poster Set, 11”x14’ each, laminated)
•  

Hi Janet,
I'm delighted that you want to know more about STEM learning and preschool. I think that as you explore the topic, you'll see that STEM learning builds on what we in early childhood education already excel at--the development of children's curiosity, exploration, experimentation, hypothesizing, and observing, plus the integration of learning domains.
First off, I'd suggest you look to NAEYC. The organization is involved with a number of STEM initiatives (http://www.stemconnector.org/NationalAssociationfortheEducationofYoungCh...). You'll find professional development resources available to educators at: http://www.naeyc.org/store/STEM-Kit.
If you look through past issues of NAEYC's journals YC and TYC you'll find some very helpful articles. For example, the January 2012 issue of YC features an article entitled, From STEM to STEAM: How Early Childhood Educators Can Apply Fred Rogers' Approach by Hedda Sharapan.
You'll also find many excellent articles on the subject available free to you on the Internet. Here are some that I think might be helpful to you:
http://www.teachpreschool.org/2012/06/stem/
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&...
http://www.fredrogers.org/pro-dev/june-2011.html
http://www.sbcalliance.org/success-stories/prek-2nd-grade/161-not-sure-h...
http://libraries.idaho.gov/files/The-Importance-of-STEM-learning.pdf
Finally, there's even a preschool STEM discussion thread at: http://www.edutopia.org/groups/science-technology-engineering-mathematic....

If anyone has some resources they would like to recommend, please share your thoughts.

I hope that you enjoy your STEM explorations, Janet.

Hi Melissa,
Your question is one that I think has plagued most teachers at one time or another. Let me start by giving you my philosophy about the use of centers. I would like children to have access to all centers. However, access does not mean requirement. I define "equity" in this context as freedom to choose. The theory behind learning centers is that children learn best when they are playing in a center that appeals to them--whether this be art or sand play or dramatic play. In each center, materials and equipment should be available that will allow children to learn the same cognitive, language and literacy, socioemotional, and physical objectives specified by the curriculum and your state's early learning standards.

I would like to see children picking the centers where they want to work, not having to visit centers on a preset schedule. If children rotate centers on a schedule, what happens is that no one gets very involved in what they are doing and you will not see the type of play that leads to learning. Children need to both be able to select where they want to play and offered enough time to achieve high-levels of play. This implies, too, that you are scheduling enough time for your center play. At a minimum, children need an hour of time to get involved in the type of play we are talking about.

When putting this philosophy into practice, some teachers become upset if children go to the same center day after day. To me, this is not necessarily a problem. It usually means that the child is having successful experiences --which is what we want for every child. Also, when a child does well at playing in a particular center, he becomes a mentor to other children playing there. Again, this is a plus for children.

There are instances, though, where children become "stuck" and trying out a new center is a good idea. If you become worried about this or fear that a child is monopolizing an area so that others don't get a chance, then feel free to introduce a child to another area. Take a toy or material from an area he likes and introduce that material to the child in a different center. For example, if a child spends all of his time in the library center looking at books, take a book on insects to the Discovery Center and talk with the child about how you might do some ant experiments. By joining the child in this new center, you'll make him feel safe to venture out into a less familiar center. This way you build on what is motivating to the child--but place it in a new context.

To put this philosophy into action does, as you note, require management skills. This is especially necessary in small classrooms, as you point out. No matter how well designed, a learning center can only support so many children at a time. I would suggest the following strategies:

1. Take a hard look at each center. How many children can optimally play in this center at one time? In most cases, this will be from 4-6 children. Even in a large center like blocks, you don't want to crowd the center or else children will not be able to make elaborate constructions. We want children's play to become involved, so bear these factors in mind when setting a maximum limit.

2. During your morning meeting (prior to center time). Let children decide which center they want to play in that day. A visual cue such as a planning board works well. Children can put a velcro-backed photo of themselves (or an avatar of themselves they've adopted) in a slot or atop a photo of the learning center they've picked. When the allotted number of slots are filled, children will see that they need to pick another center.

3. Alternatively, you can put bracelets or necklaces on a hook in each center corresponding to the allotted places available. Children will don a bracelet/necklace while playing in the center. When all of the bracelets/necklaces are in use, the center is full.

4. Children can play in a center as long as they desire. When they are through playing--and have cleaned up--they can move on to another center of their choice--as long as there is space. In the meantime, they should change the placement of their photo on the planning board and return their bracelet/necklace to its hook and put on a new one for the chosen center.

With time, you'll find that children can mentally figure out when a center is filled. For example, four smocks in the Sand and Water center will alert children to the capacity of that center, just as six chairs at the art table indicates the capacity of that center. However, I highly recommend concrete management tools in the beginning to acclimate children.

You might also want to make use of "sign up" sheets as further management tools. If you want to track, for instance, who has helped themselves to a morning snack and whom you might need to remind, place a sign up sheet at the snack area of your cooking center. Children who have had their snacks will indicate so by signing their names (as best they can) on a sheet of paper.

Finally, if you find that you are having additional management problems, try involving the children in a solution. Very often they can see the root of the problem and help you come up with a plan that will work for your classroom.

I think that you'll find that with just these minimal management techniques, you will find that there will be a flow to children's use of centers.

Hi Suzanne,

I'm delighted that you're eager to initiate a construction learning center in your program. I became convinced of the importance of this learning center for older children many years ago while observing an after-school-care program. Primary aged-children all congregated in the preschool children's block center. The delight and single mindedness with which they approached this center made it clear to me that this was something they needed in their school lives.

Your dealings with an administrator who views legos and blocks as frivolous toys is not so very different than the situation of preschool teachers who must convince their administrators that sand and water play aren't just messy pastimes. Everyone (well nearly everyone) can see the benefit of reading or math centers, but when it comes to centers that are less clearly academic-oriented, administrators may become squeamish.

To me, I think the key is showing your administrator how a construction learning center can be a haven for academic learning and is anything but frivolous. To do this, I would promote the clear linkage between construction and STEM learning. It is generally agreed that to be competitive in our global economy that children need to proficient in STEM learning-- that is in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Rather than being about "just toys," construction activities with blocks, legos, and other building materials naturally support STEM activities. A construction learning center makes abstract concepts concrete and learning an exciting discovery. For example,

• Legos can be used to teach engineering and technology, as children make simple machines and robotics
• Legos and unit blocks are designed to teach math concepts of geometry and proportion
• Children can draw blueprints and then make constructions from them (engineering, math, science)
• Children can add pulleys and gears to problem-solve block ideas in their constructions (physics)
• Children can take photos and feature their "real estate" in newsletters (technology)
• Children can make constructions that will withstand differing weather conditions (science)
• Children can solve challenges: design a city out of blocks OR build an airport where passengers can reach their planes quickly (all STEM skills).

A construction learning center offers children an opportunity to apply STEM principles to real-life situations. At the same time, children must negotiate with classmates for roles and materials. These hands-on activities make theory come alive and will excite children to enjoy problem-solving and express their creativity. With an open mind, your administrator should be able to see the many virtues of this approach.

Some administrators may be more convinced if you give them literature to read. Share with her or him some of the many articles on STEM learning. Lego puts out a digital curriculum for Grades 2-8, which might also prove helpful to share (http://www.learning.com/legoeducation/).

If you find some receptivity to the idea, it might be helpful to present the concept at a parent education meeting to which your administrator is invited. At the session, encourage parents to use a construction learning center as their children would and to then reflect on what they were learning. Having "light bulbs" go off as the parents build constructions and analyze all of the math, physics, and engineering that took place can be a very effective selling point.

Finally, if you get to the point where you are able to incorporate a construction learning center into your program, take a bit of time to interview the children about the experience. Then share these comments with your administrator. If she or he is still having second thoughts, hearing of how the children are so excited by this learning center (which they will be!) is bound to qualm any final fears.

Again, let me commend you for fighting for an idea you feel will improve your program. Hopefully, you can convince your administrator to give it a try. Good luck!

How nice to hear from you, Susan. Let me say right off what a wonderful job you are doing with NAEYC's web site for Families. If any of you have not yet seen it, I urge you to take a look at it at http://families.naeyc.org/. You'll find a wealth of information, tips, and advice for families there.

I do have some thoughts on how families can bring the spirit of learning centers into their homes. Before getting into specifics, though, I'd like to offer a word of caution. We don't want parents thinking that their homes should look like schools. We want families to be able to maintain the warmth and nurturing feel of what makes a home a home.

Having said that, there are, of course, things that family members can do to recreate the type of learning that goes on in centers. Probably the most practical way of doing this is, as Susan suggested, through bins or plastic tubs in which parents can store materials and props related to a learning center activity. Old shoe boxes (especially for boots) would work, too. Label the boxes with both words and a picture or photo of what's inside--blocks, dress-up clothes, musical instruments, and the like. Boxes with learning props can be stored in a closet or even under a bed. However, you want to be able to reach them readily. Having intact boxes handy makes it possible for children to be able to play when they are motivated to do so, without searching for playthings.

Here are some ideas on specific learning center materials parents can use at home with their children.
Blocks: Preschool-aged children enjoy constructing with proportional wooden blocks and colorful pattern blocks. These can be stored in plastic tubs and pulled out for building.

Dramatic play can take place anywhere at any time. Having a box filled with dress-up clothes and accessories like hats, scarves, and jewelry makes the experience more exciting and elaborate. Depending on the children's interests and the amount of preparation parents want to do, additional dramatic play activities can be set up in separate prop boxes: an old hair dryer, combs, brushes, and curlers could go into a beauty parlor prop box. Similarly, a briefcase, notebooks, papers, and pens could be gathered into an office prop box. Let the children's imaginations guide parents in their selection of props.

Art is something children love to do at the kitchen table. Keep a box nearby with different types of papers and drawing/painting materials. Adding a scissors and paste allows children to do collage and experiment with other techniques. Parents can use kitchen supplies to make homemade playdough, clays, and paints.

Math and Manipulatives: In addition to stored board games and puzzles, parents can give children empty egg cartons for sorting collectibles such as buttons or old keys. Materials for children to use in making their own games can be stored in an old shirt or game box.

Library area: Most families like to store books in their children's bedrooms, so they'll be close by for bedtime read alouds. A bookcase where children can reach the books and look at them independently is ideal. It's helpful for parents to understand that because children can't read the titles, books are best displayed by being fanned open with the cover illustration on view.

For writing, either the kitchen or dining room table works great. Again, a box with papers, markers, pens, a ruler, stationery, and note cards can be taken from a closet or drawer and used as a writing center.
A great many families have computers in their home that children eagerly use. Most preschool teachers can give parents a list of appropriate web sites and recommend software for use at home. The family computer can be a great enhancement in helping children learn to read write, draw, and become technologically knowledgeable.

Water play can readily be done in a bathtub or at the kitchen sink. Parents might wish to have a plastic box filled with props for children's play: sponges, basters, colanders, strainers, pitchers, tongs, etc.

Cooking itself can of course be done with a supervising parent. There's probably no need to have a prepared prop box here, since parents can direct children where to find needed equipment and food. It is a good idea, though, to have a child-sized apron on hand and to get children used to washing their hands before and after handling foods.

Music is something that is often played in homes and most children know how to access or ask their parent to hear an MP3 player or CD. Children love singing together with family members and making up silly songs to sing together. A large box can be used to store musical instruments such as maracas, castanets, and drums. Parents can likewise make homemade instruments such as a rainstick or a drum with their children and keep them stored together in a box.

Discoveries occur everywhere in the home. Children observe science when popcorn pops, when light makes plants grow, and rainbows occur after storms. To make science a routine activity, parents can collect magnets, prisms, and other science-related materials into a prop box for children to take out, observe, and make predictions about.

It takes organization more than effort to make one's home a learning environment that stretches children's imaginations and ignites creativity. While you don't want to make the home look like a school, you do want to plant the spirit of learning. Rather than learning centers per se, having appropriate materials that are used in learning centers available for children to play with sets the stage for this type of learning.

One final thought: rather than rotating the content you offer children, I would take my cues from the children themselves. If a child wants to write or draw, then I would bring the appropriate storage tubs to a table and let her work with these materials. The same goes for music, cooking, or playing with math and manipulatives.

Should a child never have experienced a learning center-type activity such as water play at home, then I would be sure to introduce the child to this activity and make up a prop boxes that he or she can use. Hopefully, the children's parents and teachers are in close communication, so that parents can support their child by reinforcing what takes place at the program.

Hi Todd,

What a great question. Over the decades I've had the pleasure of working with teachers on room arrangement all over the world. I've seen some learning centers I'd like to forget (an all playdough learning center in a room that had no space left for block play) and many, many creative learning centers where I observed such amazing activities as worm races and children measuring shadows. In one technology-advanced program, the children prepared a PowerPoint presentation every day to show their parents at departure time what they had been engaged in that day.

One learning center that I'll always remember with joy was a dramatic play area set up as a beach. This inviting center echoed the many beaches of Okinawa, where this program was located. White sand was piled atop a tarp that covered the floor. Children and teachers laid back on striped beach chairs reading books and magazines. Palm tree fronds hung from the ceiling and beautiful shells that could be identified and classified were strewn across the beach. One day when I was visiting this center, the children had a picnic on this beach that they had "cooked" ahead of time in the cooking center. You couldn't look at this wonderful setting without thinking you needed to put on sunscreen, sit down, and relax.

Perhaps the best idea I've come across that I thought could be infused into any program anywhere was a publishing center. Children busily used the computer, writing materials, and available tools to type, write, illustrate, scan pictures into, bind, and laminate books. Every child in the classroom had authored and illustrated at least one book, which was housed in the room's library. Visitors were given a detailed tour of each child's works.
On the day I visited this program, I was invited to sit in an Author's Chair in the publishing center. A small group of children proceeded to interview me about my writing process. I think they felt badly for me that I couldn't publish a book in a day, as they were able to. We all agreed, though, that writing is a satisfying way to pass the time.

I was so impressed with this publishing center that since seeing this one I have worked with scores of programs since to help teachers incorporate a publishing center into their library area, or to include it as a self-standing center. In TYC, we have spent the last few seasons introducing readers to enhancements to learning centers. The very first one I chose to highlight was a publishing center like this terrific one I encountered.

It will come as no surprise that the teachers who had the beach dramatic play area and the publishing center are two of the very best it has been my honor to observe. Clearly, learning is a two-way street.

Hi Mary Ellen,

Thanks for your question. Please take a look at my response to Sherry below, and let me expand on what I have written.

Let's start with kindergarten. It is my opinion that learning centers are absolutely appropriate with this grade level. In fact, I feel so strongly about this that for several years I worked with the Department of Defense Dependents' Schools (DoDDS) to rearrange all of their kindergarten classrooms into learning center-based environments. The transition from tables and chairs to learning centers stocked with exciting materials had profound effects on teachers and students alike. What I heard over and over was that this new arrangement gave the children permission to play and that learning took on a new spark.

The beauty of learning centers for children of kindergarten age is that they know how centers work and can maximize their potential. Explorations and investigations are everyday occurrences. Children make elaborate constructions and astound us with their creations. They can do project work together on insects' movements or do an individual study of an icicle melting in the water table.

Some kindergarten teachers will want to adapt the environment to accommodate curricular needs for required lessons. This can best be done by adding extra tables and chairs, if needed for journaling or small group math lessons. Yet, even with these accommodations, the nature of the learning centers can remain unchanged. Children can still work individually, in pairs, and small groups. For class meetings, children can congregate in a large center such as the library or block center.

If you look at your state's early learning standards for kindergarten, you'll find that all of them can be mastered as children work in the various centers, in ways that are meaningful to the children. Whether constructing a block building with pulleys and gears or hulling a strawberry for afternoon snack, children are developing needed cognitive, language and literacy, socioemotional, and physical skills.

While I have worked only minimally with teachers in grades 1-3 on the topic of room arrangement, I will share with you my thoughts. I hope that teachers of these grades will jump in with their own perspectives on this topic.

In the primary grades--and I would include third grade here as well as first and second grades--both children's learning needs and the curriculum require that you adjust the idea of learning centers. Nonetheless, I think there is a place for somewhat different looking learning centers in these classrooms. Remembering that these grades are a part of early childhood, I think it makes sense to add components of what we know works well with young children to the learning environment. Children have the rest of their lives to sit in desks focused on the teacher. Why not make learning exciting when we have the knowledge to do so?

In Grades 1, 2, and 3, children need to be able to work in table groups collaboratively with their peers as well as exploring materials in centers. Therefore, I would suggest that centers ought to be used to support the curriculum, rather than acting as its foundation. Useful centers would include a meeting area, a library center (including a writing area), a math center, a science center, and a center for constructing blocks and Legos. In these higher grades, I view learning centers as a curriculum support, whereas in preschool and kindergarten I think of learning centers as the basis for the curriculum.

Hi Lisa,

I absolutely agree with you that you want to incorporate writing into your centers. What I would encourage you to do first of all is see if there is room to add a writing table (and some child-sized chairs) to your book area, turning it into a library area. Be sure to include a variety of pencils, markers, and crayons and different types of papers, including index cards, lined and unlined paper, newsprint, and the like. A scissors, hole punch, stapler, staple remover, glue, tapes, stencils, sandpaper letters, and alphabet strips will offer children many opportunities to create letters and write. If you can attach a blackboard to one of the walls and provide children with chalk, this will give children further writing experiences.

In addition to a permanent writing area, I'd suggest seeing how you can naturally incorporate writing into other centers. For example, you could attach a piece of paper to the refrigerator in the dramatic play area and have children keep a shopping list. In the block area, you can supply graph paper for making blueprints that children recreate in blocks. They can also make signs such as "Please do not put away." or "Created by Alexandra." In the Discovery Area children can make graphs showing which plants grew tallest or who wore shoes with Velcro closures. In the Cooking Area, children can "sign" in when they have had a snack. If you think about it, you can incorporate writing in natural ways in every learning center.

Your children and their families will be grateful to you for emphasizing writing in your curriculum.

Hi Sherry,

You've asked an excellent question that I'm sure others have thought about as well. The reason that you see so much written about preschool learning centers in journals like TYC is that preschool-aged children--and I would add Kindergarten-aged children as well--are at the ideal ages for using learning centers effectively and appropriately. From ages 3-6, children can maximize what learning centers have to offer--indepth exploration and experimentation of content in contexts that are motivating to children. Preschoolers have the attention skills to be able to independently make use of learning centers and the social skills to work cooperatively with others.

This does not mean, however, that learning centers can't be used with older or younger children. You will, however, have to adapt your approach to accommodate the way these children learn and what they can gain from having learning centers. For children in the primary grades, where much of the learning is done collaboratively through table groups, these are the focal point of the room, rather than interwoven learning centers. You would want a library , a math center, space for art and construction, science tools, and the like. But rather than having "interest areas" where children explore learning according to their own agenda, in the older grades learning centers support the designated curriculum goals.

You have asked specifically about learning centers for two year olds, mentioning that teachers have had problems managing them. It's no wonder that there have been problems, since learning centers as we have come to know them, are designed with preschoolers or kindergarteners in mind. Toddlers and twos will have difficulty deciding what they want to do in a center and how to use materials and return them on their own. They need much more teacher supervision than preschoolers want or need.

You might consider a hybrid design for your twos. While you could incorporate learning centers for books, music, dress-up, push-and pull toys, painting, and sand and water play, you'd also need table and chairs for the children to eat together as a group, a diaper changing station as well as child-sized toilets, and room enough for cots or mats. Compared to preschoolers, twos spend considerably more time engaged in routines than they do in learning experiences. Their daily schedule and the learning environment have to reflect this reality.

In using learning centers with twos, I would maintain the same philosophy as we do for preschoolers--children should be free to choose the learning center they wish to be in. If they never pick a particular center, that is okay, although you might try introducing them to a toy or piece of equipment you think the child would like to entice them to try that center. Children can learn language and literacy, math, science, social studies, and motor skills in any center. So where they choose to play should be theirs. Likewise, how long they choose to stay in a center should be the child's choice. We do know, however, that it takes time for children to become fully engaged in what they are doing, so if teachers spend one-on-one time with a child in a center reading a book or washing a doll, the likelihood will increase that the child will want to stay where she is and keep learning.

I would look at two's as an opportunity to introduce children to learning centers and view them as a place that they will eventually be able to explore on their own. Teachers will need to spend time showing children how centers work and interacting one-on-one with each child to focus on specific learning goals. With children this age, learning centers require more of the adult's time in order to make them successful tools for learning. At certain times of the day, you may want to limit the number of learning centers open to children so that you can control what happens in each. If you'd like more information on how learning centers can be used with younger children, a good resource is The Creative Curriculum for Infants, Toddlers, & Twos (2006) published by Teaching Strategies.

Hi Emily,

Your thought about extending "snail mail" into the digital age, is certainly a great idea. If your group has been studying the Post Office, it's a natural leap to explore the use of email in communication. Many programs have their own web page or regularly communicate with families through email. You can draw children into the loop, showing them how to write and receive email. Even if children are just learning to write, family members will be delighted to receive emails with invented spelling or drawings. Children can readily learn to scan their artwork into emails that parents will be thrilled to receive. There is also software available that can read written text or speak highlighted letters, words, and phrases.

If you are working on a class project such as studying the Post Office, scour the Internet for other programs that are also undertaking this study. Many classrooms like to set up web sites to highlight their results. You and the children can communicate with these programs, sharing your ideas for explorations involving the Post Office. Feel free to email ideas back and forth. This is a practice you can undertake even if your project work isn't focused on letter writing, the way the Post Office is. You can email another preschool program about their project studies--no matter what the topics.

Finally, you can find penpal sites that enable your entire class to communicate back and forth via email with children in other countries. EPals Global community (http://www.epals.com/), joining with National Geographic and The Smithsonian, connects over 1.6 million students and teachers in 200 countries worldwide. In addition to the basics of matching classrooms by country, language, or other criteria, their free service includes instant language translation, curriculum guides, world maps, world weather, and Web-based teacher-monitored email accounts for students. Ks-connection.org (http://ww6.ks-connection.org/home.cfm) similarly offers free penpals for preschoolers around the world.

Hi Jodi,
First off, let me commend you in looking to the children for inspiration in your dramatic play area. This is a great way of ensuring that you are addressing the children's interests and of building motivation into your program.
Did you tie the Post Office dramatic play area into project work you were doing on the Post Office? This is one way of extending learning. Not only might you have children acting as postal workers in your center, you could have them studying how the machines operate, weighing letters and counting out the value of stamps. Have children brainstorm questions they would like to answer through their study of the Post Office...and then work with the children to answer these questions.
I assume that you had a field trip to a local Post Office. What did the children see there that they might incorporate into their dramatic play? You could certainly bring in maps to study as children sort letters to different destinations. Or perhaps you could set up a wrapping station for mailing packages, using lots of traditional and nontraditional measuring tools.
Another way to extend the play is to reach out to family members for ideas and input. If any of them have ever worked at a Post Office, it would be great to have them share these experiences and compare them to what the children saw on their field trip.
Finally, don't forget about books. Reading aloud a book like Seven Little Postmen by Margaret Wise Brown and Edith Thacher Hurd explains the mystery of how a letter gets to Grandma's house. Children can trace this process as they write and send their own letters. Bunny Mail by Rosemary Wells explores communication, as Max thinks he writing to Santa and Grandma thinks he's saying hello. This is a perfect springboard for studying communication and miscommunication and how to get your message across. The British import The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allen Ahlberg explores how letters are written to fairy book characters. Children can have fun addressing letters to make believe characters such as Pig #3, Brick House, The Woods.
There are many ways to keep your Post Office dramatic play center alive, as I've tried to outline. However, as you point out, there may come a time when children are no longer interested in the subject and it's time to move on. In this regard, I'd like to leave you with a closing thought. While it's a great idea to add additional dramatic play learning centers based on children's interests (such as you did with the Post Office), consider leaving a home center intact. We find that children like and need the familiarity of a home living area (either a kitchen, living room, or bedroom) and that it's a good idea to make this a permanent fixture of your dramatic play center. You can, of course, replace toys and materials to reflect children's changing interests, but having a permanent pretend play area where children can take on family roles is important to their growth and development.
Rather than replacing your kitchen area, in the future I would recommend adding an additional play space to the dramatic play area, such as your Post Office. Depending on your particular group, the children's interest in this space should last a month or more--even indefinitely. Once you feel that the children have learned as much as they will in this area, take a hard look at what is happening. You may be able to renew the children's interests by exchanging props and adding new materials. If however, after six weeks or so, you are not seeing growth, then I'd consider dismantling your Post Office and replacing it with another play space of interest to the children--such as a Vet's office or a restaurant.