“Playing House and Pretend Play” explained in 4 pictures

Free printable Kids’ Encyclopedia

Young children understand that playing house and pretend play are games where they imagine objects as other things, take on roles, and enjoy interacting with friends

Playing house is a game where we pretend to do things from daily life.
We use toy food and tools.
We pretend to cook food and pretend to eat.

💬 What Is Playing House?

Playing house is a game where we pretend to do things from daily life. We use toy food and tools. We pretend to cook food and pretend to eat.

🤔 Which tools have you seen at home?

In pretend play, we imagine objects as other things.
We can pretend a block is a cake.
We can also pretend a round toy is an apple.

💬 We Pretend Objects Are Other Things

In pretend play, we imagine objects as other things. We can pretend a block is a cake. We can also pretend a round toy is an apple.

🤔 What does this block look like to you?

In pretend play, we take on roles.
Sometimes we become a shopkeeper.
Sometimes we become a customer.

💬 We Play by Taking on Roles

In pretend play, we take on roles. Sometimes we become a shopkeeper. Sometimes we become a customer.

🤔 What kinds of things does a shopkeeper do?

When we play with friends, we take turns.
We share the tools with everyone.
After we play, we put things back where they belong.

💬 How to Have Fun Playing with Friends

When we play with friends, we take turns. We share the tools with everyone. After we play, we put things back where they belong.

🤔 What should you do when you and a friend want to use the same toy?