Role Play

Role-Play is a very important part of children's development. An excellent way to develop the child’s Communication, Language and Literacy skills is through role-play. Role-play can be very cathartic as children may wish to play through the experience, working through their own thoughts and/or fears within a safe, non-threatening environment. Children’s confidence and self-esteem can also be boosted from role-play. It gives children the chance to use their imagination however, it is important that the children and adults realise that they are playing.

This idea of ‘learning through play’ can be linked into the curriculum guidance for the foundation stage’s areas of learning and early learning goals, under the topic of Communication, Language and Literacy. According to this document we give children the opportunity to imagine and recreate their experience through play. It would appear that language can be developed further and links made with literacy as the children play. They will practise saying and doing things that they would not normally undertake as they progress.

The role-play area should be regularly changed in order to give children a wider experience. This particular photograph shows the role-lay area being used as a 'Vets'.

By offering children a variety of costumes and clothes, the children are able to extend their imagination and creativity. Costumes also give the opportunity for staff to differentiate the role-play.