Cakes and shakes order of the day for Fyshwick preschoolers

The preschoolers at the Fyshwick Early Childhood Centre have been strolling down the road to Buzz Cafe with their teacher and volunteer parents to order and pay for their own food while learning a little more about the big wide world outside this week.

And while the orders were more along the lines of a pink biscuit and a banana milkshake than a double-shot soy frappuccino, the children did indulge in the cafe scene, talking about their weekend, laughing with each other and daydreaming through the windows.

Teacher Katie Brook said the three- and four-year-olds had a pretend cafe at the preschool and had been talking about the different roles of the customer, wait staff and chef, how to read a menu and order an item, and how to eat their food and pay for it, while also learning about foods from different countries and cultures.

The trip to the local cafe was an extension of that learning and play.

''They seem to have really enjoyed it,'' Ms Brook said.

''It's definitely helped with their learning development and their understanding of the community of Fyshwick, where a lot of their parents work.''

And the pint-size cafe aficionados hoovered up their treats while successfully handing over the dosh - they were just tall enough to peek over the counter - before it was time to return to the centre for the more familiar world of show and tell and story time.