We love getting new toys to experience together. School-age 1 at RisingOaks | John Sweeney recieved a Pet Shop house to explore; given to us by our own friend Gabriel! It came with many different pieces, including the structure itself, a bag of different animals to play with in the house such as puppies and hamsters! When the two houses were first set on the ground, every child flocked over to see and explore! It was interesting to see which child decided to do what first. Liz decided to use her own little pony toy to play with inside the house, while our friends Cohen and Jacob seemed to veer more towards playing with the animals provided away from the house such as the turtles it came with. It was evident that each child had their own imagination and preference of play. This activity demonstrates a sense of belonging as the children were all able to contribute their ideas without judgement or other children getting upset. There are many pieces available for each child to engage in play. I loved to see all of my friends experiencing and learning the same toy for the first time together. If ever there were no animals available for play, they integrated toys from our cart such as shopkins to use in the house instead.
The children demonstrated patience while waiting their turn to use an item from the house if it was not readily available to them. These two houses have already encouraged children to engage in imaginative play, which has many benefits for their academic and social development. Not only do they get to create an entire world inside the house, but they also get to decide how people interact with each other within this world. The playhouse prompts the children to participate in role play, where they may take on adult roles and pretend to be in charge of other figures within the game, or take on roles of acting younger than they are which shows me how each child views the world they live in.
