Hameray Classroom Literacy Blog

The Power of Play and Pretending—with FREE download!

Hi! I’m Susan Paul from The Fun Factory. I truly believe in the power of play and pretending for young children. Peter Gray from   Free to Learn   said, “Play, in all its varieties taken together, works to build us into fully functioning, effective human beings.” Today I’d like to share with you how I use books for a literary connection in my dramatic play center.

After reading   Pretending    from   the  Having Fun    theme   of   the   My World    series , we discuss the many ways to pretend. We talk about what it means to   pretend . After reading the book, we talk about what we would do if we pretended to be a ____ (princess, Ninja Turtle, cook, vet, etc.). The book goes into our dramatic play center after we have discussed the subject of pretending. No matter what the center is set up to be, the book stays for reference. Making the Dramatic Play Center different themes helps children learn vocabulary and promotes literacy. You can download some forms to use in your veterinary center at the bottom of this page!

Here are some pictures of the kiddos in the dramatic play center!

  Fun at the Vet Center  
Home Living             Astronauts

Doctor’s Office (Reception)

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For more information about the  My World series shown in this post, click here to visit our website , or click the image on the left below to download a series information sheet with key features. To download the lesson plan and worksheet, click the image to the right.