Cardboard Candy Vending Machine Activity

If you have leftover Hallowe'en candy and a box with dividers (we made a trip to the liquor store for ours), your kids can make their own homemade vending machines. We've had hours of pretend play 'buying, selling, stocking' leftover Halloween candy and even a few media literacy lessons along the way! If you look closely, you'll see my children haven't done very much price-checking! What you need:

• Cardboard box with dividers (wine boxes work really well--they have 12 'slots')
• Markers, scissors, tape
• Halloween candy

You can write onto the slots to label them (this is a fun sorting activity for kids of any age), or cut out small pieces of paper and stick them on. If you open up both sides of the box and lay it on its side, you've got a 'display' front as well as a way to 'stock' from the back! Then, the pricing can start. It's a great way for kids to practice their money sense (small amounts equal to coins are easiest for little ones). If your kids are older you can talk about 'comparing' too, for example: how much should a bag of chips be compared to a small chocolate bar? Then, the 'vending' can begin! My boys had lots of fun trading and selling (rather than eating, fortunately!) and my 8 year-old even designed a 'closed' sign for when he was not 'in the store'.

Find more cool sorting, money and math games and activities on Momstown.ca!
• Counting Coins for Preschoolers
• How to Make Math Monstrously Fun
• Monster Math Mats: Counting, Sorting and Busybag Fun