"Hh" Is For Doll HOUSE Play

 

    I have written a previous post on all the benefits of using dramatic play for young children and their learning process. In this ppst I wanted to talk more in depth about how important a doll house (yes, boys have just as much fun playing with doll houses as girls, but if the term doll house is not your fav we just call them play houses here with our son.) can be used as a tool for helping children learn. Doll houses are very nostalgic for so many people. I know I can recall endless hours spent up in my childhood bedroom spent engaged in playing with my doll house. I loved being able to control what went on in my own house. Maybe you have similar memories of playing with your own growing up?

     When children play with doll houses they can break down things that are going on in their own families. They use them to try to understand how to problem solve disagreements through making the little people role play different interactions. They also begin to understand more about what household things are needed for certain everyday tasks and where they belong. Bath time needs a bath tub and is done in the bathroom and not in the kitchen... gotta cook dinner for the family over in the kitchen. Bedtime routines can be heard while the child us putting the kids to bed. You can hear how they think disagreements should be handled if they have the little people fight over the television. They build their vocabulary as they pretend to be the mommy or daddy. While playing doll house they are also using those fine motor skills as they move the people and furniture around. It may be helpful to get a glimpse of how they view their homelife while listening in on their doll house play. This type of dramatic play is different from dress up role playing in a sense because instead of pretending to be one thing, with the doll house they are role playing multiple people so their brain waves are being exercised even more as they try to be in more than one person's shoes. It is hard work doing that for them.