Watching children play pretend can be entertaining and may even give you a good laugh. Whether your child is pretending to be their sibling’s teacher or pretends to be the queen while having tea with their stuffed animals, this type of play is not only common for kids but it is also beneficial.
Imaginative or pretend play is an important part of childhood that can help your kiddo develop and learn. At Inch By Inch Child Care in Bedford, we understand how different types of play can benefit children. Our programs allow your kiddo to use their imagination to learn, grow, and develop. We wanted to give you more information about the benefits of pretend play so that you can encourage it at home. Read this blog to learn more and be sure to schedule a tour of our child care center.
Stimulates Creativity
One of the biggest and more obvious benefits that pretend play can help stimulate and boost is your child’s creativity. When kids are playing pretend, no matter what they may be playing, they are creating an opportunity for themselves to use their imagination. Imagination is an important cognitive skill that is important throughout our entire lives.
By allowing your child to use their imagination and creativity to create different scenarios as they play, they can further develop these skills. Imagination and creativity are both important aspects of the lives of adults. We use our imagination to create new things, make plans, and understand other people’s perspectives. By encouraging your child’s pretend play, you can allow them to practice using their imagination and stimulate creativity that will carry into their adulthood.
Teaches Them about Themselves
When your child takes part in imaginative play, the experiment with different roles, characters, and scenarios. This often helps kiddos learn more about what they like and dislike, what interests them, and what they can do. Imaginative play can help them learn more about the world around them and give them a better understanding of a lot of different things.
If you have ever seen your child playing with dolls or action figures, you may notice that your child uses these toys to express a part of themselves. Pretend play is one way that your child can express their feelings or ideas in what they view as a safe space. This can not only teach them about themselves, but also allow you to get to know your child more and what is going on inside their head.
Develop Language Skills
When your child plays pretend with their siblings, friends, or stuffed animals, they will be talking a lot. Whether they are talking about their day over some tea or teaching a classroom full of stuffed animals, they will be working on their language skills and developing them. If you listen to your kiddos playing, you may hear a few words or phrases you didn’t know that they knew.
Not only will your child be able to develop their language skills, but they will also begin to understand the power of language and how they can use their words in different ways. This can also help young kiddos to make the connection between spoken and written words, which can benefit them as they begin to learn to read.
Supports Social and Emotional Development
Pretend play gives your child an opportunity to play a variety of different roles. When they pretend to be a teacher, mom, doctor, or whatever they may choose, they are putting themselves in that position and creating a scenario that allows them to walk in someone else’s shoes. This teaches them empathy and helps them understand how to see things from another perspective.
When a child is playing pretend with other kids, they develop their social skills further. Kids work together to find a topic and create characters that interact. Not only are kids developing their social skills by playing and cooperating with other children, but they are also developing their emotional skills by pretending to be someone else who interacts with the other child’s character.
Develop Problem Solving Skills
When your child plays pretend, they will create different scenarios with problems that they have to solve. Even deciding what they want to play, what characters to be, and what goes on in their scenario can help develop thinking and problem-solving skills.
Your child will use cognitive thinking skills to help them solve problems in their pretend play scenarios. These skills will come to use throughout the rest of their childhood and into adulthood. With imaginative play, your kiddo can also learn about the world around them. They can explore your backyard as they pretend to be an adventurer, they can learn about space while they pretend to be an astronaut, and they can even help your other children learn more about math when they pretend to be the teacher.
Helps Them Deal with Different Things
Sometimes, kids will use pretend play to deal with issues that may be scary or confusing to them. Before their first day of preschool, you may notice your child pretending to be the teacher to their stuffed animals. They may pretend to be the doctor after they had to go in and get a shot. Playing like this gives your child a way to make sense of different things in their life that may scare them or that they want to understand better. It allows them to prepare and feel more comfortable when the time comes to face it themselves. This can be a great way for them to express themselves and cope with what they perceive as issues.
There are many benefits to pretend play, and your child will grow and develop a variety of new skills when they take part in these imagined scenarios. Encourage your child to play pretend so that they can experience all of these benefits.
At Inch By Inch Child Care in Bedford, we understand the benefits of imaginative play and how other forms of play can be beneficial as well. We offer programs that can help your child develop more skills and grow. Learn more about our child care center and schedule a tour today!