Encourage your child to use her imagination — it’s not just fun, but it serves many purposes in a child’s development and builds learning skills too!

That is what you will find when you browse around the internet on information about imaginative play. What about when you have a special needs child? Then what?

All children learn through play, and make sense of their world through play, Pretend play can help kids with special needs in all sorts of real-life ways. As Plato once said, ‘Play is serious business.’

When your child is around age 2, you usually start seeing them incorporate imaginative play into their day. It’s natural. Well, for most. But not all.

Sometimes Emily isn’t interested. We have introduced her to new toys over the past 7 years and many things have gone untouched or played with. I remember when Emily used to have a “Little People” infatuation. She never really played with them…but inspected and reinspected them. Putting them down, picking them up and inspecting them again.

We have encouraged pretend play and she just wanted to do her own thing. In Emily’s world and on Emily’s time.

Emily has used her imagination a little bit….but not as much as she is now. You can encourage it, and encourage it, and encourage it….but if your child isn’t ready…it isn’t going to happen. Not like you had hoped anyway.

Welcome to our new milestone. Imaginative play and putting a crown on Roo. I bet Roo is even having fun too!