The activities of the coffee shop were derived from the performance of six different jobs: Baker, Cashier, Counter Set–Up/Server, Coffee Maker, Cleaner, and Dishwasher. Each job was accompanied by a job description that was posted close to the area in which the job was performed. The goal for each student was to learn every job well enough to perform it independently. The students demonstrated this mastery by teaching a new student how to do the same job. The role of Student Supervisor was also one of the jobs and it had its own description and evaluation checklists.

In addition to learning the procedures of the coffee shop, students also learned about work culture. The concrete and very real activities of the coffee shop have become "building blocks", according to Carrie, from which less tangible skills were developed. Carrie referred to these as soft skills. The soft skills included problem–solving, prioritizing, taking risks, solving conflicts, supporting others, asking questions, taking initiative, working together, dealing with change, learning to be dependable and depend on others, pushing the boundaries of personal complacency, learning that mistakes are a part of learning, and learning that they have many valuable skills. These soft skills, explained Carrie, evolved from the real–life activities of the coffee shop; and it was the students themselves who set the content for learning these. For example, if a student was late or absent, then the others had to do his/her work. They may then criticize the late student, and in this way, the student realizes the impact of his/her actions on others. Carrie described other ways in which the students learned the more affective skills in the coffee shop. If two students worked together, sharing tools and space, they had to work out a way to do this so the job got done. Or if a student planned to bake a certain type of muffin but someone else forgot to record an item on the shopping list, then, again, the students were the ones who called attention to the problem and not the instructors.

Finally, students were engaged in a variety of activities that required them to use literacy and numeracy. These activities were reading the recipes, reading abbreviations, signing up for a specific job, reading food labels, reading various dry and wet measures, counting money, making change, completing a cash tally sheet, labeling the day's baked goods for sale, reading expiration dates, and making lists of items to be bought. Students rarely talked about these separately. Rather, they were seen simply as part of the overall operation of the coffee shop.