Module 14: Pretend Play
In this module we will review the beginning skills needed for pretend play, as well as the importance of pretend play. Start with Why is Pretend Play Important? found below. Then, work your way through each of these sections in the order listed. When you reach the end of each section, you will find a link to the next.
Toys That May Encourage Pretend Play
Expanding Play Skills To New Situations & Using Naturally Occurring Reinforcers
Why is Pretend Play Important?
Why should we be concerned about teaching pretend, make-believe play? Why is it important? Pretend play is found in every human society. All around the world, young children pretend to do the things that adults and older children do. Why does that happen?
First, it’s a way for them to learn about the behavior, thinking, and feeling of other people, and to learn that other people may have different thoughts and feelings than they do. When they pretend to take the role of another person, like a mommy, or to think about the pretend needs or feelings of a doll, it teaches them to consider the thoughts and feelings of others. It’s also a way to get beyond just reacting to what’s in front of them in the real world, and to think about things that aren’t there at the moment. This thinking about things and not just reacting to what’s right there in front of us is basic to our human ability to think.
In addition, when children play with each other, building social relationships, they often do it through pretending, so it’s an important social skill. And finally, a lot of research has shown that engaging in pretend play stimulates language development.
When is Your Child Ready to Learn Simple Pretend Play?
Most children start to do simple pretend between their first and second birthday. Then their pretend play gets more complex and more varied. They take on more roles and they spend more time pretending with other children. For most children, this continues until around the age of 8 or 9. At that time, pretend play starts to be replaced by other interests. But some children continue to enjoy pretend play until early adolescence.
What skills does a child need in order to start pretending? The most important thing is to be able to imitate simple things that adults do. This could be holding a telephone to the ear, stirring something in a pot with a spoon, or putting a baby bottle into a doll’s mouth. If your child cannot yet imitate simple adult actions, he’s not ready to work on pretend play.
Another sign of being ready for pretend play is understanding simple language. In typically developing children, you usually start to see simple pretending in children who can understand some language and can say some words or phrases. So, if your child can imitate you well, has some words or can imitate sounds that you make, she may be ready for simple pretend play. If she can use pictures or gestures to tell you what she wants, she may be able to do simple pretend. If your child doesn’t yet communicate her basic needs, you can try to show her some simple pretend actions. But be prepared to back off for now if she doesn’t show any interest or doesn’t seem ready to learn how to pretend.
If your child has been diagnosed with some form of autism, or you suspect that she may have autism, then she may find it difficult or not fun to learn to pretend. This may be true even if she has all the skills mentioned above. What you can do is start to teach simple pretend play. But be ready to back off and try again in a few months if she has a hard time learning to pretend.
Types of Play We Will Cover and Those We Will Not Cover
There are many types of pretend play. In this program we’re going to work on the ones that are simplest and usually come earliest in development. If your child is ready to learn the more advanced pretend play skills, then see the suggestions about resources at the end of this section. These are the four types of play we’ll describe how to teach:
This is where the child pretends to do one thing that is quite simple. This might be saying say hello into a toy telephone, pretending to drink from an empty cup, or feeding a baby doll with a bottle. She may pretend with a real object (like pretending to feed a baby doll with a real spoon or pretending to say hello into a parent’s cellphone) or with a toy spoon or toy telephone that look like the real thing.
This is where the child pretends to do a series of things. For example, the child could pretend to feed a baby doll, hold the doll on her shoulder to burp it, and then put it in a toy crib and cover it with a doll’s blanket. Or, she may pretend to cook something in a toy pot and then to eat it.
This is where the child makes a doll or stuffed animal do something as if it were real. For example, the child could make a stuffed animal cry, or have two stuffed animals hug each other. Or using a doll-house, the child could pretend to have a doll take a bath, walk up or down stairs, or go to sleep on a bed.
This is where the child makes one or more dolls or stuffed animals act out a series of steps to make a simple story. For example, she could pretend a baby doll is crying because it’s hungry. Then she would have the mommy doll come and feed it. The More Complex and Mature Types of Play Are:
This is where the child uses an object that doesn’t look at all like the real object she’s pretending to use. This is sometimes called substitution play. For example, she might pick up a block and pretend it’s a telephone, instead of using a toy telephone. She might pretend a stick is a spoon and pretend to stir a pot with it. That is a more mature form of pretending. Even more advanced is where there is no object at all. For example, the child could pretend to hold a telephone but there’s really nothing in her hand. Or she may pretend to brush her hair with an imaginary brush.
This is where the child takes on the role of a character. For example, she could pretend to be a superhero or a Disney character, or an animal. Or she could pretend to be a mommy or daddy, a teacher, or a firefighter. This often involves acting out scenes from favorite stories. Or she could make up stories that fit the character or animal. This is an important part of pretend play and is often done by two or more older children playing together. |
You should start by seeing if your child can understand and likes the 4 simple types of play as described above, starting with the first one. If and when your child is doing all of these types of play, you can think about her readiness for numbers 5 and 6, which are not covered in this module. You can try out these types of play with your child and see if she understands what you’re doing, finds them fun, and can expand on them. If you think your child is ready to learn these two more advanced forms of pretend play, look at the resources at the end of this module on pretend play.