How Does Dramatic Play Affect Children's Language?

Playing dress-up, making up scenarios with dolls and putting on puppet shows are common in kids' play, but those entertaining activities carry developmental value. Pretend play helps your child develop motor skills, social interaction skills and an understanding of different situations. Her language skills can also improve during dramatic play. With knowledge of how the play affects language, you can encourage those skills even further.

  1. Self-Expression

    • A pretend-play situation encourages the children participating to express themselves. A child who is otherwise shy might feel more comfortable using words when he pretends to be a different character or voices a puppet. When kids interact with one another, they must learn how to express what they are thinking and want to play. The interactive aspect is gone if a child doesn't hold up part of the conversation or verbalize his role. Kids learn to turn their thoughts into verbal messages as they engage in pretend play.

    Language Purpose

    • Imaginative play helps children develop an understanding of the purpose of language. Kids learn how to use meaningful language for a variety of purposes. When a child playing the part of a character, asks a question of another in character, he likely receives an answer. If in the role-play a child gives a command, gets a response, whether it be "Don't boss me," or with a bow, "At your service, my highness." If he is playing Dad and asks his "child" to do something, he gets positive feedback when the playmate does the requested task. Dramatic play helps kids develop listening skills that are essential in communication. If a child doesn't listen to his playmates, they will become upset that he isn't cooperative.

    Vocabulary

    • Dramatic play increases children's vocabulary as they interact with various props and other kids. A child, for example, might make up a story that includes a word the others haven't heard before. A playmate might have a different name for the same thing. Adults help build vocabulary by interacting with children who are engaging in dramatic play. For example, if your child is imitating you ironing clothes, you might ask "Are you ironing your clothes?" If he's not familiar with ironing, you describe the process, introducing new words to his vocabulary. Your child's language will increase in fluency when he plays make-believe.

    Literacy Connections

    • A dramatic play center that incorporates printed words builds the connection to literacy. As your child sees print in books and on dramatic play props, such as restaurant menus and pretend food packages, he begins to realize the letters have meaning. Early readers begin to connect the words they hear with the words they see in print. Early interactions with letters and words builds the literacy skills your child needs to learn to read. Choosing props for the dramatic play area that include print help build that verbal language and print connection.

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