Pretend Play in Childhood

1883 Words4 Pages

Imagination is the ability to draw a picture, a story or an idea in the mind. It is the ability to feel and believe of something that is not real, this term is widespread through the literature. When children use their imagination they could be anything they want and they could travel through time and space. There are different ways children’s can use to develop and express their imagination. For example, drawing, reading stories and role playing by pretending to be someone or something else, these ways allow children to express their imagination through thinking, creating and involving emotions. Imagination gives the children the opportunity to explore the world around them. Play has an important effect on children’s imaginative development, it is a common activity between children but it is not just a free time that child enjoy. For instance, imaginative play or role play encourages the children imaginative skills and this includes fantasy, pretend and symbolic play. Imaginative play also known as fantasy, symbolic, pretend and role play. This paper will focus on the imagination process and the theory of mind, children understanding of others mind and mental representations. Pretend play will be an example of showing how children use their imagination through this type of play.
Imagination this term raises a concern about if we are we born with this ability or we gain this ability through learning. It is argued that children learn to imagine and pretend, Rogers and Evans (2008) stated that we are not born with this ability only we have the potential for it. According to Vygotsky (1978) at the preschool age there are many unrealizable tendencies and desires emerge. He believes that if these needs are not realized immediately and...

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...Fein, G. G. 1981. Pretend play in childhood: An integrative review. Child development, pp. 1095--1118.
Harris, P. L. 2000. The work of the imagination. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishers.
Leslie, A. M. 1987. Pretense and representation: The origins of" theory of mind.” Psychological review, 94 (4), p. 412
Piaget, J. 1962. Play, dreams and imitation in childhood. New York: Norton White, J., 2002. The child's mind. London: Routledge/Falmer.
Rogers, S. and Evans, J. 2008. Inside role-play in early childhood education. London: Routledge.
Rogers, S. and Evans, J. 2006. Playing the game? Exploring role play from children's perspectives. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 14 (1), pp. 43--55.
Vygotsky, L. S. and Cole, M. 1978. Mind in society. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Wood, E. 2013. Play, learning and the early childhood curriculum. London: SAGE.

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