SINGLE MOMS : 5 BENEFITS OF ROLE-PLAY IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Role-play benefits as a part of child development are many. Since it helps children to be creative and express themselves, the benefits are immediate. It helps the child’s development as they find themselves learning vital skills without even realizing; such as communication, language and social skills.
Surprisingly, it’s not always their bedtime stories or favourite action films that children want to recreate. Whether it’s their parents, older siblings, or grandparents, children are often inspired by the adults around them and want to imitate what they see.
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Language Development
Role-play is one of the most effective ways for children to acquire language and develop their speech. Why? It allows them to communicate with older family members, as well as other children. Also, role-play helps them to improve their vocabulary and improve their conversational skills as they act out different scenes. They learn new and exciting words in the process.
Encourage creativity
As children act out different scenarios with their friends, the creative part of their brain blossoms. The joy of role-play in child development is that no two play times are the same. Children will often switch up their play scenarios for endless new story lines, often influenced by their latest interest or TV obsession. This fuels their creativity and encourages their imagination. In this way, playtime is always fun and new, whilst allowing them to bring this creativity to other aspects of the lives, such as the classroom.
Help to express their feelings
It is no surprise that child psychologists and therapists turn to role-play when helping children to explain how they feel. Role-play helps children act out their feelings, even when playing with friends, in a light-hearted and relaxed way. It can often help little ones to process emotions as they re-enact or create different scenes during play time, allowing them to problem solve and tackle issues which they may face in real life. This can help parents and guardians to identify any problems their children may be having and address them sooner.
Improves Socialization
Whether playing with their peers or members of the family, children’s social skills can benefit hugely from role-play. When children place themselves in an imaginative social setting, they find new ways to interact with others, understanding how to relate, empathize and communicate with others around them. Role-play often encourages shy little ones to come out of their shell. It really is great to see how playing in a creative way can help to inspire their confidence.
Gets kids moving
Role-play is by nature active, physical play, whether children are building a fort with sticks or pushing their doll around the local park in a pram designed with imaginative play in mind. Role-play allows them to get outdoors and enjoy the benefits that physical exercise offers. From getting their heart rate pumping with fast paced games to learning hand eye co-ordination by tying ropes. Or dressing their favourite doll, all of these are skills which play a crucial part in their development.
In conclusion, by providing children time away from screens to be creative and learn more about themselves and the world around them, there are many ways that role-play can positively influence children’s lives and their development.
Rockstar Mom has some key suggestions to help your child blossom and grow.