Pretending

Overview

Pretending allows students to step back from a problem or task and think about it from multiple angles. Through this kind of play, learners naturally take on different roles to act out multiple perspectives and possibilities, developing their Cognitive Flexibility.

Use It in the Classroom

Watch a preschool classroom that supports student learning through dramatic play. By exploring pretend situations, students learn how to communicate with peers and develop their Social Awareness & Relationship Skills.

Dramatic play to retell a story allows learners to practice their Narrative Skills to better comprehend a text. As they role play these events with others, they also gain a deeper understanding of various emotions and practice Self-regulation and Social Awareness Skills.

Design It into Your Product

Videos are chosen as examples of strategies in action. These choices are not endorsements of the products or evidence of use of research to develop the feature.

Learn about an educational game, Dr. Panda Town, that allows learners to roleplay daily interactions in an imaginative town. By acting out different social interactions among characters, learners practice and explore their own Social Awareness & Relationship Skills.

Products can incorporate pretend play by the context they establish. They can center around pretend play and exploration of open-ended life experiences, like vacation or nature. By using their Background Knowledge to create imaginative interactions, learners develop a deeper understanding of Emotion, Self-regulation, and Relationship Skills.

View References

Resources

Below are additional examples, research, and professional development. These resources are possible representations of this strategy, not endorsements.

Academic Emotions

Subtopic that includes research on students' emotions related to learning on Digital Promise's Research Map

Building Literacy through Play

How to incorporate play materials that promote literacy in PreK-K

Emotion & Cognition

Subtopic that includes information about how the brain recognizes, processes, and regulates emotions on Digital Promise's Research Map

Identity, Behavior, and Relationships

Topic that includes research on the development of social and emotional skills on Digital Promise's Research Map

Pretend Play

Creative craft activities to foster pretend play

Teaching Pretend Play

Rethink Autism video with steps to teaching pretend play