Ok, today I wish to introduce you to a company I met and experienced their products. I have to admit those are the most beautiful baby dolls that look real and feel real I have seen. Beautifully done, design from Spain, huge variety to choose from, look real, feel real! I personally highly recommend a company called Munecas Arias. Some of their dols can be found online (see bottom of this post)
I am a big believer in “pretend play for toddlers”. I will share with you a personal experience as a foster mom…
My older daughter (today 14 years old) played of course but mainly with me. I enjoyed being a kid again with her and playing with dolls, playing pretend play like I was again a child! Had a real blast…
Then came my 2nd daughter (today 10 years old) who loves to pretend play and is great at it. She can play for hours, as a teacher, mother, doctor, just name it. She has dolls and they act as her babies. Beautiful to hear behind the door about the reality she lives in, her worries and fears😊
here she is sleeping with her Munecas Arias doll holding her like a real baby.
Then came my little boy (today almost 6 years old). He is a foster child and we received him at 1 year old. I have to admit one of the most difficult things for me was the fact he did not know how to “pretend play”, not until 6 months ago. As a mom, I had the strong feeling that something is missing, that he has to learn to pretend play, that it is a crucial stage for him to develop right and grow from there. I took this as a goal and tried to “teach” him something that is usually such a natural thing.
I understood when discussing with his psychologist that his first year was so tough that he had to stay “real”, could not “imagine”, could not let go to a fantasy world. If I was saying like “lets say you drive the fastest car now and then…”, he would say “it is not real”. He just could not “dream” of anything else from the reality and make things happen in his mind. It was one of my goals to.
We played a lot what would I be if I was a superhero? What skill would I choose? What would he choose? I tried to play with his cars and little miniature characters, trains or all games possible, just to assure he will go through the stage of pretend play.
Today I can hear him talk in his bath and I enjoy every second of it!!
So why Pretend play for toddlers is so crucial for your child development? (source: brighthorizons.com/ )
- Children learn about themselves and the world around them. Dramatic play experiences are some of the first ways children learn about their likes and dislikes, their interests, and their abilities. They experiment with role playing and try to understand better what they saw or felt. Dolls often become versions of the child and are a safe way for children to express their feelings.
- Children experience confusing and sometimes scary situations. Through these role plays, they will act and solve the issue their own way and will become more comfortable and prepared for life events in a safe way. Children often use pretend play to work out personal challenging life events such as illness in the family, absence of a parent or divorce, or even a house fire.
- Pretend play requires advanced thinking strategies, communication, and social skills. Through pretend play, children learn to do things like negotiate, consider others’ perspectives, transfer knowledge from one situation to another, plan and act on it, express and listen to thoughts and ideas, assign tasks and roles, and synthesize different information and ideas.
- Children cultivate social and emotional intelligence. How we interact with others is key to our lifelong success and happiness. Knowing how to read social cues, recognize and regulate emotions, take turns, and engage in a long-term activity that is mutually beneficial are no easy tasks.
- Children synthesize knowledge and skills. When children play ‘grocery’ store, they sort similar foods in sections of the store, use math basics to determine prices, communicate by making signs, experiment with shapes and weights as they organize the store, work collaboratively as they assign roles and play together, and much more.
Moreover, we tend to attribute dolls to girls and we forget boys become dads one day and the importance to allow them to play pretend play as well, without judging or getting stressed that this means something.
I found an interesting point of view of “Why Boys Really Need Boy Dolls?” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/woman-power/201702/why-boys-really-need-boy-dolls
Personal note from Munecas Arias, Spanish manufacturer of baby dolls that look real and feel real:
“For us, making dolls is much more than doing business. It is a tradition for over 40 years. 2 generations of making dolls, using the best local techniques and designers because we believe real looking dolls bring happiness to children around the world.” By Jose & Francisco
In the USA, you can find those dolls in 3 types on Amazon?
Check those links and images.
This page contains affiliate links meaning I may earn a commission if you use them. I only recommend products I use and honestly trust. For more info read the full disclosure.
Yes, I agree that role play is essential in every child’s life. My son often plays with cars or becomes a favorite superhero, it’s very interesting. And also, when my son was little, he also played with the doll, put it to bed, fed it, took care of it. Therefore, dolls are not only for girls, I know that for sure.