Life with kids always has an element of drama so why would we want to add more, but drama and dramatic play activities for wee ones can support kindergarten readiness fun and learning. There are some distinctions between drama/theatre fun and dramatic play but I will put that aside for this post and focus on the pretending and imagining.
Drama fun starts with wee ones when we pretend to be gone in Peek-a-boo, or gobble them up, or be the Itsy Bitsy spider that tickles them all over. As children learn the game, they pick up the cues and interact with us as they hide behind a blanket or run away from the pajama monster. Kids also love to dress-up and pretend and a red cape with a few black spots became the inspiration for being a ladybug. Ladybugs fly but they also crawl very slowly so not only is there is brain-fun but body-fun, too. During this play-time food had to be found for the ladybug, a house made, some other bugs to be friends –in this case some stuffed animals– and more. All this involved language, planning, organizing, deciding, and other skills, too. Even ladybugs have likes, dislikes and feelings so this play included moving, thinking and feeling.
Bugs don’t have to dress-up in capes. They can always have something as simple as an old towel or even invisible wings. Did you ever imagine that pretending to be bugs could be this much fun for your little one?
