Chapter 3.Pretend Play
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Excerpt
In this chapter, we revisit the play form variously called pretend, symbolic, or imaginary play that is our primary focus in this book. We trace its origins in the earliest parent–infant exchanges; its trajectory during the years of early childhood, where it occupies about 10%–17% of a preschooler’s and 33% of a kindergartner’s play behaviors (Smith 2010); and its decline as a distinct play modality in late latency. More than any other play form, pretend play is credited with facilitating a remarkable transition in human development, when the child advances from toddlerhood to the point of readiness for school culture. Close observers of this period note the quantum shift in personality development that is represented, in myriad ways, in each child’s version of pretend playing, in regard to narrative themes, forms, representations of others and self, and eventually in the remarkable capacity to collaborate with others. We recap the particularities and singularity of pretend play and explore the accompanying developmental moment that distinguishes it from all the other types.
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