Drama! Drama! Why role play is important for child development

7 Benefits of dramatic play + 15 of our favourite resources

Delve into the world of childhood imagination and you can be anything: a doctor one day a princess unicorn the next. There’s no limits and it’s a joy to watch.

Not only is dramatic play joyful and creative, it’s also brilliant for cognitive development too.

According to research more advanced socio-dramatic play emerges from the age of 4 and in order to play in this fashion, children need to be able to play symbolically. However pretend play based on everyday events can be observed from the age of 2-3 onwards. You might notice your toddler pretending to be a member of the Paw Patrol or acting as a dinosaur, for example.

From my own experiences as a mother of 3, I have noticed that the really intricate dramatic play starts from 4-5. My 7 year old daughter will often lead the way with dramatic play scenarios, involving her younger brother in her games. Typical scenes include a trip to the vets, café and airport!

What is symbolic play?

Simply put, this is using one object as a substitute for something else. For example, a stick as a wand, a bowl of pinecones acting as ‘food.’ You might have seen the infographic, ‘it’s not a stick, it’s a wand, sword ’ on social media.

HOWEVER a child first needs to understand what each item is before they can use them as a substitute in play. At home, mine love to use pinecones, conkers, acorns and dried flowers as a substitute for play food in the play kitchen.

7 benefits of dramatic play:

1.  Cognitive Development – children use past experiences ( a visit to the café, for example) and create a picture of what the experience was like in their minds – they then use those experiences  in play.

2. Understanding how the world works – dramatic play is a way of processing events and understanding how our society works.

3. Develops speaking and listening skills – especially when playing with siblings or friends

4. Extends vocabulary – there are many opportunities to learn new words.

5. Develops social skills – saying please and thankyou, understanding emotions

6. Mathematical concepts – from counting to using ‘money’ to pay for things.

7. Problem solving skills – children need to work together to assign roles to one another or even act as a difficult customer!

Whilst events like World Book Day can be a headache for parents, acting the part of a character has numerous benefits for children

15 of our favourite resources for dramatic play:

It’s important to note that whilst specific toys such as a wooden coffee machine, pretend food or a play kitchen can enhance play, you don’t have to go out and buy heaps of expensive resources. Often, everyday items, nature treasures or other toys can be repurposed to use in dramatic play.

One of the reasons we love open-ended toys and loose parts so much is because they can be used in a multitude of ways.

1. IKEA play kitchen

2. pots and pans

3. cash register

4. doctors bag

5. play silks

6. wooden bowls

7. kitchen utensils

8. nature treasures – conkers, pinecones, sticks

9. Grapat Carla set (can be used as a substitute for play food

10. old wallets/purses

11. costume jewellery

12. old store loyalty cards

13. old telephone (remove the wires first)

14. dress-up box (can be bought costumes or old materials / charity shop finds)

15. IKEA chalk board – for writing signs, shop front

Items like an old telephone can be added to a dramatic play area - children love playing with real objects

Further Reading:

Schemas of Play Mini Course

Toys 101 Mini Course