07/26/2025
Welove using pretend play to support language development—and one of our favorite themes is playing doctor! 🩺👩⚕️💬
Pretend play creates natural opportunities for children to:
🗣️ Use and expand vocabulary
Words like stethoscope, thermometer, check-up, heartbeat, bandage, and patient become meaningful as kids use them in context.
For example, a child might say: “I need the thermometer! Your temperature is too high!” 🌡️
📖 Practice narrative skills
Children learn to tell stories with a beginning, middle, and end.
“First I check your heart. Then I give you a shot. Now you feel better!” This sequencing helps develop storytelling and comprehension skills.
🧠 Understand and use different sentence types
They use questions (“Where does it hurt?”), commands (“Open your mouth!”), and descriptions (“You have a big owie!”).
👫 Use social language (pragmatics)
They learn to take turns, use polite language (“Don’t worry, you’ll be okay!”), and even adjust their language depending on who they’re "treating"—a stuffed animal, a parent, or a peer.
💡 Develop symbolic thinking
Using a spoon as a pretend thermometer or a box as a doctor’s kit strengthens their ability to use symbols—just like we do in language!
🧒✨ When we follow the child’s lead during pretend play, we open the door to meaningful, joyful communication. It’s not just play—it’s language in action! 💬💉🧸
