
Written by Smita Srivastava
“Look mommy, I am a doctor, let me give you an injection. Daddy, listen to me, I am teaching you! Vroom vroom vrooooom” If you have a toddler at home, you are sure to have heard something very similar to this. Your little one pretends to be someone and plays out the role in their own way. Pretend play in toddlers is very common and very entertaining.
Toddlers love to observe and imitate others around them. They pretend to be their parents, characters from their books, or even pretend as if their toys are real and alive. If you see a toddler talking to their toy or treating it like an ally in their game, do not panic. Pretend play in toddlers is perfectly normal.
In This Article
Pretend play is a form of play where toddlers use their imagination to give new life or meaning to the things around them. It is a form of symbolic play where the toddler will assign a new role, name, or character to an object around them, to make it a part of their play set-up.
For example –Toddlers may pretend a stick or a box is a race car and they can make car noises with their mouths and race the cars against one another, or simply get from one part of the house to another.
Pretend play is a very important phase of development in toddlers. It helps enhance their imagination, memory, communication, and social skills.
Pretend play is nothing but bringing imagination to life. Since there is no one right way to pretend play, toddlers can come up with endless ideas and just improvise as the play progresses. Pretend play kindles their imagination and makes them come up with new ideas every time.
Your toddler’s pretend play will most likely go through the following stages:
This is the first stage where they will do something with toys or objects. You may notice your toddler hugging their soft toys or dolls like it is a real person. They will smile, hug and carry it along. They are pretending the doll or toy is real.
Next, they will progress to shift the focus away from themselves and toward the objects. At this stage, they will make their toys do activities, like their car speeding and jumping over cliffs, animals running or fighting, etc. Here they are pretending their toys are real and make them perform actions like in real life.
In the next stage, your toddler will perform all pretend actions in the right sequence. If they want to cook something, they will first gather all the items they need for their pretend play, set up the play space, and then start the game. They will wash, cut, clean and do everything they have observed an adult doing. Your toddler’s memory is improving and they can go from one step to another in a sequence.
In this stage, your little one will include others in their pretend play, will assign them a role, give instructions, and come up with an imaginary game.
For example, if you are sitting next to them when they are playing with a doctor set, they will pretend you are the patient and will start treating you. If your toddler has started talking, they may ask you questions like a doctor would, and expect you to answer like a patient would.
So, now they know they are pretending, they know you are pretending and they are able to not only assign two identities but also play along without confusing the roles or objects.
They will scout around, find various objects they can use in their game, and give the objects a new identity. They will include other children in their pretend play and assign roles for each. In this stage, your child will communicate, wait for the others to play out their roles, and respond accordingly.
Some of the benefits of pretend play in toddlers are:
[Read : Speech And Language Development Milestones In Toddlers]
You can encourage your 2-year-old to pretend play in the following ways:
As your child gets older, you can aid their pretend play in the following ways:
[Read : 12 Useful Tips For Planning Playdates And Sleepovers]
At a loss for pretend play ideas? Try these out:
Learning through play is one of the most effective learning methods, and pretend play can help your toddler learn a lot. It can help them develop in multiple areas and make them more confident. Never suppress your little one’s imagination and creativity, it is the key to discovering their hidden talents.
Lead by example. Pretend play with their toys and show them how they can use various items in different ways.
Pretend play also known as symbolic play is an important milestone in your toddler’s cognitive development. Through pretend play, they learn to mimic actions they observe around them, differentiate between real and fake, and bring out their imaginations in actions.
Pretend play peaks around 2-3 years of age, when a toddler learns to communicate, differentiate, and act out familiar routines.
Read Also: Simple, Creative Activities For Toddlers
With a background in Mass media and journalism, Smita comes with rich and vast experience in content creation, curation, and editing. As a mom of a baby girl, she is an excellent candidate for writing and editing parenting and pregnancy content. The content she writes and edits is influenced by her own journey through pregnancy and motherhood. When not writing- She can be found curled up with a book. Or, bingeing on Netflix.Read more.
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