The Advantages of Playing With Realistic Dolls
Dolls are a few of the toys that kids have played . Their use was documented around 100 AD in Greece. There's very good reason for these toys to be long lasting through human history. They are a representation of the child , and allow for a child to acquire a greater comprehension of themselves as well as those around them. While gender roles dictate that dolls are a toy mainly for women, playing with dolls can provide important growth. Here's how playing with dolls can help you child's development: Social Skills. Playing with dolls solidifies social abilities that are obtained in a child's early years. When children play home, collaborate and they learn to communicate with one another. By taking good care of a doll, they know how to take care of one another.Responsibility. Children are learning responsibility as well by learning social skills that are important from an early age. They learn how to take care of a doll. Learning this skill can help children learn how to care for their pets, or older siblings know how to care of the younger siblings. Empathy Compassion.Another significant social skill that kids learn when playing with dolls is the way to process emotions like empathy and compassion. Just like caring for their doll teaches responsibility, it enables them to develop into caring people and teaches them to empathize with people around them. Imagination.Dramatic play, the kind of play that happens when children play with dolls, helps develop a child's imagination as they encounter creative, imagined scenarios with their dolls and other children. Language. Playing with dolls as well as their friends, kids run for their games into situations that are new and special. Communication between one another can strengthen their vocabulary by filling it with language that is practical. Children gain insight into house routines that could differ from their own.
Playing with Reborn Twins is also a excellent way for young children to get ready for the arrival of a sibling. Parents can model ways to touch and care for an infant which could give a taste of what they can expect to the sib-to-be. Once the baby arrives, the new big-sib can care for their own baby doll directly alongside dad and mom. This may be particularly helpful since it is quite normal (for obvious reasons) for the older sibling to not get as much attention when the baby arrives. Being able to have their own action -- but still feel connected to the parent(s) and family -- can help a child ease into having an additional member in the family. Some children will prefer to play out these same scenarios with other stuffed toys or miniatures because they feel better attached to them or they require the play to be more removed (less real to the actual situation) than playing with baby dolls. I am mentioning this because I don't need parents/caregivers to believe that just because a child does not play with baby dolls that they practice and can't understand these skills. However, I do believe that infant dolls offer children something unique that toys can not do.
Eliminating clothes: Though some clothing items are easier to remove than others (like those baby socks that never remain on their small feet!) , prior to doing this for themselves, kids benefit from trying out it on a doll. Taking clothes off is usually mastered prior to putting it on and includes removing things like hat, socks (pulling from the top rather than pulling on the toes), shoes, top, using a pincer grasp to unzip, pulling down pants, and unbuttoning large buttons. Some common clothing items children can practice on themselves and dolls comprise placing a hat on their head, zipping with some assistance, putting shoes on, pulling pants up, putting on a shirt, and buttoning large buttons. Using both hands This ability is expected to emerge around a year and a half and will coincide with the development of skills such as holding or zipping/unzipping . Feeding: As children play skills grow, so do their self-feeding abilities! Playing with a baby doll gives them the chance to practice suitably holding and using feeding things like spoons, bottles, cups, forks, bowls, etc..
Children use play to comprehend their world. Doll play helps kids: practice caring and nurturing (socio-emotional)re-enact interactions with their own caregivers, family, and friends (cognitive reframing) prepare for a sibling (rehearsal). Irrespective of a child's gender, these skills are all valuable life lessons. In carrying, holding, feeding, and rocking a baby doll, kids are practicing being loving to others. They may be modeling how they remember being taken care of as a baby, or how they see adults in their world caring for children. Just as children copy parents talking on the telephone, working in the kitchen, vacuuming, etc., doll play is no different. It is children's way by practicing these everyday events to understand and begin to create the world their own. Doll play is a way for children to things which have happened in their own lives. Doing this enables them to increase their understanding of the events. They can also take on the opposite role, which enables them to view things from another's perspective (SUCH an important skill to get!) . Many times children will enjoy taking on the adult role in order for them to feel a feeling of power and control. This makes complete sense because children have very little control over their world (for some necessary and very good reasons). Giving a child the chance to have some control and power in play allows them to give it a go in a way that is safe.
Children learn plenty of language through their play and play provides them opportunities to utilize and practice their language and speech skills. Let's look at only some of the language concepts that a baby doll can help teach and encourage: Body Parts: Dolls are FANTASTIC for teaching various body parts: eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hands, palms, tummy, feet, toes, knees, elbows, etc.. Yes, you can teach these without a baby doll but providing another opportunity to practice labeling this vocabulary helps to generalize the language to other people. It helps to teach kids that"nose" not only refers to the thing in their face but to all faces. Clothing Labels: Using the doll and its garments, you are able to teach the names of clothing items like shirts, pants, shoes, socks, jammies, etc.. Putting on and taking off the clothes also works on fine motor skills! Basic Concepts: Use baby with other baby toys (bed, blankets) to teach some basic concepts like: prepositions (baby in the bed, infant under the blanket), colors, and size concepts (using different sized dolls). Verbs/Feelings: Use the baby with another baby toys (bed, bottle, clothes) to educate verbs/feelings/etc. Like: eat, drink, sleep, sit, stand, hungry, sleepy, hungry, and more. For example:"Is the baby hungry? Answering"wh" questions: You can ask your child various questions to work on his understanding of these words while he plays. "Where is baby?" "What does the infant want to eat?" Social/pragmatic abilities: Baby dolls can be a terrific tool to use to help educate proper social/pragmatic skills. Children can take turns playing with different dolls, and they are able to practice using language to ask questions about the dolls and what they are doing.
Bathing: Children can practice giving their doll a bath (with pretend water if the doll isn't allowed to get wet)! This is great for practicing sequencing skills (first fill up the bathtub, then place on shampoo, then rinse hair, etc.). I have also used dolls in therapy to help children move beyond their fear of bathing with them help me give the doll a pretend bath using all the needed supplies (so they get used to the sensory experience from the water, shampoo, etc. and can have more control over the experience). We talk about the supplies needed and the actions taken during bath time, and then they can narrate the measures and comfort the doll during"bath time" while playing out a simple or elaborate feign story. (A plastic Potato Head also works great with this experience.) Parents have been so pleased when their kid finally agrees to get in the tub after practicing with the doll for months on end!Grooming Hygiene: Dolls provide the perfect chance for practicing grooming and hygiene skills such as brushing hair, brushing teeth, and washing hands. Potty training: While I do not have a lot of experience on this front (yet!) While skills like indicating discomfort over soiled pants and sitting on a potty chair with assistance are skills a child must develop in him or herself, they can be performed on the doll either from the caregiver or the child him/herself. For example:"Uh oh!
The baby doll is such a toy that is amazing that we expect ALL kids .will have the opportunity. This is for teaching children about themselves and the world around them because baby dolls are packed with potential. Let's take a look! Baby dolls provide kids lots of opportunities for developing fine motor, their cognitive, and abilities. Kids often find it easier to practice these skills on someone (or something) else before they could apply them to themselves. And since boys develop some of their fine motor and self-dressing skills later than women, it's essential for them to be exposed to more opportunities for training. For instance: Dramatizing with a doll: Around two children typically begin to act as if their doll can see and interact together. They may link several activities with the doll in sequence such as feeding the doll, bathing the doll, and then placing the doll to bed. This form of pretend play is a hugely important part of their cognitive development.
