? about pretend play

fxz109

Is it something that kids start to do on their own, or is it something you have to foster?  And what age do they (or you) start?

I know DD is too young right now for this kind of play, but I was thinking about this for some reason recently. 

LClaire

It's UNREAL how much they just do it themselves! Seriously amazing to watch! They just start to pick up random objects and do other things with them - whether it's walking around with your purse or using a toy of some sort that they start "eating" (not teething on) and suddenly you realize that they're actually playing and pretending that things are other objects. It's so incredible to watch! Especially since the beginning stages are almost always copying things you do (Amelia has been obsessed with pretending anything and everything is a phone for a loooong time). Standing in a kitchen, talking on the phone, pretend eating - it's so crazy to watch them get it and add a whole extra dimension to the things that they understand!

Definitely letting them just explore on their own without guiding to certain things and feeling like you always have to entertain them is a big way that you actually do foster that creativity.  I feel like this subject has come up a ton lately in our life (like at preschool - at parent's night they had a whole discussion on how much parents need to give their kids more time to play - isn't that so sad that people have to be told to let their kids just play??). The more I hear and "learn" about it, the more it's just about giving kids open-ended toys and letting them just get down to playing without us interfering!

rlthomas7

I was about to say that I was still waiting for that, but reading the post above made me flash to Adam grabbing the reusable shopping bags, putting one over his shoulder and yelling BYE MAMA while heading to the door. And oh yeah, anything rectangular was a phone for him too...

bridz2be

Yup, from a child development perspective they will just gradually start this kind of play on their own by mimicking a lot of what they observe and finding new ways to use various objects. From what I remember from my classes and work in the lab schools when in college, it really begins around 2/12 (although can vary greatly) and is directly linked to their emotional and language development as well. Really, the best way to foster it is just to have a good environment full of different toys and regular household objects that they can play with and choose from. They'll start on their own.

In college we used to sit in one of those observation type rooms where the kids just thought it was a mirror. We of course could hear and see everything, and they loved talking into the mirror at themselves. What an experience to sit and see into a child's mind as they played!!

Christina617

I agree ... it's both nature and nurture.  They develop it on their own but you can provide opportunities to foster it's development.  I can't wait for this!