How often do you see your young, energetic children running around play acting?

What are they pretending?

Are they uttering lines from a song that they have heard on the radio?

Are they acting out the behaviors of actors and characters that they have seen on television shows?

Are they making up tunes that you have never heard and writing lyrics that do not follow the latest musical trends?

Do they create their own characters that do things that you have not seen on the most popular television shows?

What playing style tends to be considered the most clever? If the playing style that indicates that your child knows how to copy seems the most impressive to you, you are not on the side of experts.

Studies show that children who have too much exposure to media are not truly using their own imaginations when they play. They are copying. Some people may think that children must copy to learn. After all, students are expected to remember what they are told in school and those who are best at remembering and copying information are considered bright, right?

Isn’t it the same thing?

In some ways it might be, but there are also special places for children who are imaginative and creative. These are the children who are considered gifted and who are provided opportunities to learn independently and are provided advanced studies.

Learning how to use his or her own mind at a young age is an important trait and it is something that a child can use for the rest of his or her life.

-- Check out Tips to find out how to encourage authentic play!