Have you ever observed
your child play “House” or “doctor-doctor?” You definitely must have, because
make-believe is an extremely important part of children’s lives. They try to make sense of the world around
them by imitating what they see at home and the varied experiences they have outside
home. Through make-believe play (or role play) children express their concerns,
interest and feelings. If you look back and think about it, the very first make-believe
game your child played was probably “house”…that’s simply because it was his or
her first experience with “life.”
Make-believe play is a
very valuable activity because it helps children develop socially and
emotionally. It encourages children to play together so they learn to share and
take turns. It also teaches them to cooperate. For instance, when playing “house”
you could see two children preparing “pretend” food, while another one sets the
table and the third pours out tea! It teaches them the “give and take” that is
needed when interacting in a group.
Part of developing self
control is learning how to express feelings in socially acceptable ways. Make
believe games provide opportunities for children to understand their feelings
in ways that are safe and acceptable. Role play also helps children use their
initiative and develop creativity – they can choose what games they want to
play, they can then decide how they will play it and they begin learning how to
use initiative in getting other children to follow their ideas…that is the
beginning of showing and developing leadership skills!!! As aptly expressed by
eminent educationist Lev Vygotsky, “In play the child always behaves beyond his
average age, above his daily behaviour; in play it is as though he were a head
taller than himself.”
For all those young
parents who are looking for a good preschool for their child, check if your
chosen school has the facility for children to indulge in role play. If they
do, you would see things such as a housekeeping area with miniature kitchen
sets, a puppet theatre, doctor sets, an art corner and the like.
At home, children will
indulge in role play indoors or outdoors. It is not uncommon to see them take a
bed sheet and use it to make a tent! Encourage such play…it’s doing your child
good. Some suggestions on what you can make
available at home to create opportunities for role play for your child and
his/her friends are:
- Child size utensils – which are easily available and not very expensive
- Child size furniture – small chairs, tables, wardrobes with hangers
- Teddy bears, dolls, doll’s clothes, bedding (blanket, sheet, rug etc) These can easily be made from waste cloth around the house
- Toy telephones
- Play money (encourage your child to come up with substitutes such as leaves or bottle caps that can be used as play money)
- A white board (or anything with a smooth surface that can be used to write on), chalk, duster
- Hats of different kinds
- Empty plastic bottles, cardboard boxes, paper bags, toilet rolls, bottle caps, styrofoam glasses etc.
The scrap material mentioned
above encourages symbolic thinking in make-believe play, so don’t throw these –
save them for your child’s toy box! By using symbols in their play, children
develop the ability to understand that pictures, letters and numbers stand for
objects and ideas – a fundamental concept for success in school with reading,
writing and math!
So encourage role play
as much as you can. In doing so, you are helping your child develop his or her
thinking skills – especially problem solving skills. For instance, they’ll
figure out a way to keep a rug falling off a chair when trying to make a house…or
solve the problem of everyone wanting to be the “teacher.”
As always…..at the end
of play, ensure that your child knows that all play material has to be put back
in its place.
Happy parenting!
Playpen Team
