Starting his short lecture with a picture of the front of Times Magazine entitled, “Why we Play,” Brown points out the fact that the entire cover is adorned with images of children playing. Where are the adults?

Going back to a painting of a courtyard during the 15th century, he points out that adults are there playing games in all varieties, making merry, and just plain having fun. He states that we have lost something in our culture.

Described in the film are different types of play. The first is explorative play, in which a child is exploring to learn and have fun. Social play, Brown indicates, is necessary for the development of important social skills that will be drawn upon throughout life.

Rough and tumble play teaches emotional regulation as well as other emotional, cognitive, and social skills. Spectator and ritual play is compared to spectator sports. The sport is ritualized play (a game with set rules) and many enjoy it vicariously by watching (spectating).

Imaginative play is great for developing creativity and imagination. All of these forms of play are important for brain development. Brown reports that we do not yet know all of the ways that brain development is spurred on by play, but it is known that a lack of play leads to a lack of imagination and social skills later in life. For more great information about play, watch the video.

Research indicates that having regular open dialogue with your children will improve your ability to influence them for good during the teenage years. They feel more comfortable talking about the hard stuff, if talking openly is the norm in the family environment.

Researchers report this is why dinnertime around the table (with the TV off!) is a great indicator of academic and social success in children. Because when sitting around the table (with the TV off!) what better time to shoot the breeze and connect with your family?

You can get your child talking by making it like a game. You can start with the “Sad, Mad, Glad Game.” You ask your child to tell you one thing that made her sad, one thing that made her mad, and one thing that made her glad, during her day. This is a great one for dinnertime.

Another great communication game is the “Two Facts and One Fiction Game.” Tell your children two facts (actual events from your day) and one fiction (one you just made up) and ask them to guess which event is fictional. Then take turns allowing each member of the family to do the same.

Finally, a great idea for getting kids to open up and feel positive, at the start of the day, is to have “Breakfast with Compliments.” Each day, focus on only one family member at the breakfast table, having each family member compliment that one person with at least one genuine compliment. Whether a certain child was the one chosen for the day or not, he will leave for school with a brighter attitude than he might have otherwise.

Child Psychologists agree; Fantasy play is important to the development of children. Woolley et al. (2004) recently performed a study examining the cues and contexts that convince children of the reality of things not seen, but talked about.

The researchers introduced a new fantasy character called the Candy Witch. They taught the children that the Candy Witch goes to children’s homes, after Halloween, and trades some of the child’s candy for a toy.

The researchers showed a picture of the Candy Witch to the children and asked the parents to follow up by doing the trade for a toy at home, making it appear that the Candy Witch had visited the child. Depending upon the cognitive developmental level of the child, most of the younger children were convinced of the reality of the Candy Witch, especially those who had received a visit from her.

This study illustrates the concept that children use cues and contexts to incorporate new concepts. These imagined concepts can then be processed into belief or understanding. If you ask a 5-year-old certain questions, you can see how he or she uses imagination to explain things that the child cannot yet fully understand.

For example, 5-year-old Mia remarked that the statement that “Julie jumped into the air and never came back down” was not true, not because of gravity, but because, “nobody wants to live in the clouds where they can’t see the sky.” Mia used her imagination to ponder the statement and evaluate it, based on her level of understanding.

Imaginative play is important for the cognitive development of children and should thus be encouraged by parents. Dress up play, pretend cooking, roleplaying, and tea parties are examples of pretend play that can help a child along in his or her development.

According to child psychologists like Piaget, Erikson, and Vgyotsky, children’s mental development takes place in stages, as their minds are able to process and comprehend increasingly complex concepts. Imagination, as it has been discovered, plays a part in that development.

Critics of the imaginative world of children do not understand that adults use imagination on a daily basis, as well. In fact, it serves several important functions. Imagination helps us to picture and thus comprehend the things we learn about history and science, because we process these things using our imagination, or mental imagery.

We also use imagination to picture the future, to set goals and motivate ourselves, to visualize success, and to imagine how a potential scenario could play out. Imagination helps us to consider potential consequences for our choices, which is actually a function of the highest level of thinking in our brains.

The prefrontal lobe, or frontal cortex, is the location of this highest level of thinking. It is what makes us human beings and lifts us above the animals. The ability to imagine allows us to visualize ourselves in another person’s shoes, giving us one of the greatest of human values- empathy.

Very small children have poorly developed frontal cortexes and thus cannot understand, for example, the concept of sharing. This is because they have difficulty empathizing. They can mirror empathic behaviors like comforting others who are upset, but they are incapable of seeing the other person’s perspective. Imaginative play helps to develop these important functions of the human mind and of the human experience.

It’s all too typical, little Jonah, age 7, attends soccer practice after school, followed by Karate in the studio at 5:30, and has a visit from his violin teacher at 7:00. In between lessons, Jonah is encouraged to practice and hone his many skills. His schedule is full of quality activities, but is it healthy?

According to a recent report by the American Academy of Pediatrics, today’s children are overly structured in their routines. Their findings indicate that this is actually detrimental to the child’s social, emotional, and even cognitive development.

One would think that all of that teaching in such a variety of areas would be great for a child’s development. However, there can be too much of a good thing. Without unstructured play time to imagine, relax, and socialize freely, little Jonah may actually struggle in aspects of his development.

Children who have unstructured playtime as a regular and consistent part of their routine tend to be better at managing stress and are more resilient to the negative influences of life, than children who have a great deal of structure.

The American Academy of Pediatrics states that, “Whereas play protects children's emotional development, a loss of free time in combination with a hurried lifestyle can be a source of stress, anxiety and may even contribute to depression for many children. The report reaffirms that the most valuable and useful character traits that will prepare children for success come not from extracurricular or academic commitments, but from a firm grounding in parental love, role modeling and guidance.”

In other words, play is a child’s work. Play helps prepare a child for healthy and successful adulthood. Adults seeking to advance their children and get them ahead of the curve must acknowledge the fact that relaxation and free time are an important part of ensuring a child’s overall success.

Free play is a specific form of play that children need for their cognitive, emotional, and social development. Unlike structured activities, like coached soccer, teacher-directed play, or games with supervision, free play is child-directed unstructured time.

There are five main types of free play, all of which can be beneficial for a child’s development. And according to research, these forms of free play can contribute to dexterity, self-esteem, social skills, and decision-making ability, among other benefits.

Solitary free play is when a child plays alone, without guidance or direction from someone else. An example is a little boy playing with his cars on a pretend road or a little girl playing with her dolls. An onlooker is a child observing others playing. The onlooker may ask questions or make suggestions but is not actively playing.

Parallel play is when children are playing the same game or activity but without talking or interacting with one another. An example would be children playing in the same play structure without engaging in any sort of dialogue with each other.

Associative play is the next level of play. In associative play, children actually play with each other. They share activities and play materials in an unorganized way. An example would be sandbox play, where children talk and laugh together, playing with the same toys in the sand, but it is not organized play.

Finally, cooperative play is when children actually organize their play. Their play is purposeful and goal directed. For example, building a sandcastle together, or playing baseball. Team games, not coordinated by adults but child-driven, are great examples of cooperative play.

Did you know that imagination is not just for children? Were you aware that you use your imagination many times per day? Imagination is more than just fantasy play.

Imagination is what we grownups use to brainstorm solutions, visualize scenarios, consider possible outcomes, picture what someone is telling us, and comprehend events. When Joe tells his coworker Samantha about an interesting date he had the night before, Samantha automatically uses her imagination to picture the entertaining events Joe describes.

Is it any wonder, therefore, that children need to develop their imaginations? They do this through a variety of learning activities. Reading is one of the best ways to accomplish this.

Today’s entertainment for children is far different from what it used to be, in generations passed. The radio has been replaced with high-definition TV. The book has been replaced with electronic devices in various forms. These high-tech items don’t leave much room for a child’s imagination, if any.

Experts recommend reading to your child at least 20 minutes every day. This not only helps develop a love of reading and of learning, in your child, but encourages the use and expansion of the imagination. Every page encourages the child to visualize the book coming to life. Consider reading to your child every day as an important part of your parenting schedule.

The verdict is in. The American Association of Pediatricians states that free play is a necessary part of the development of children, especially in the preschool through early school-age years. But how can a parent provide true imaginative play when so many of today’s toys are electronic with flashing lights and moving parts, leaving the child to just sit and watch?

Dress-Up play is fun for children through about age 10, depending on interests and aptitudes. Little girls love to dress up as kitties, princesses, and mermaids. Little boys enjoy costumes that transform them into pirates, astronauts, and policemen.

Consider investing in a set of costumes, which can be ordered online from a costume supply any time of year. A relatively small investment, it will pay off with dividends when your child learns roleplaying, and expands his or her imagination, simply by playing dress-up.

If you invite your child’s friends over for a dress-up party, your child will also benefit from practicing important social skills like sharing, service, roleplaying, and communication. Engaging in imaginative play with other children provides a great deal of learning for any child.

Dress-up play also helps a child understand more about himself or herself as the child explores different interests and tries on different personas. Confidence is something that is earned slowly over time, and dress-up play can encourage confidence by allowing a child to step outside of the social comfort zone and reduce inhibitions by playing an animal or performing as an “actress.”

It’s time to break out the sidewalk chalk, the blocks, and the play foods. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that free play helps children to learn how to make decisions, get along with others, interact with the world around them, build confidence, practice using imagination, and develop hand-eye coordination.

Video games, television, and computer activities are not included in free play. Yet, youngsters spend an average of 4 hours per day in front of a screen. Studies show that television actually puts part of the brain to sleep, as indicated by the measuring of brain waves and activity while watching.

Just imagine if the limit for TV time was cut to an hour, what a child could learn and do in all that extra time. Playing outside is one of the best forms of free play, because it also encourages exercise. Children who play more actively tend to be more active adults.

Free play needs to be unstructured time, meaning that the child directs play. So, even dance class and parent-driven activities, while fun, do not count as free play time. A child needs to be allowed to decide what and how to play, within appropriate limits of course.

Children playing dodge ball together, without a coach or adult calling the shots, is an example of free play. Playing dress up or other forms of role play like pretending to be firefighters or playing house, are also good examples. The important thing is that, while supervised, the children are able to play freely. Encourage healthy free play with toys that stimulate the imagination and require the child to actively use them to have fun.

Did you know that the average American family spends only 33 minutes a day all at home together, all awake at the same time? With this shocking statistic, is it any wonder family quality time has gone out with yesterday’s newspaper?

Fortunately, there are some fun ways you can engage your whole family in fun conversation, with verbal games, that don’t need to take a lot of time and that don’t cost a thing. Starting with “Packing for a Trip,” you can play different variations based on age and ability.

You start with one item you’re packing. “I’m going on a trip and I’m packing _______” fill in the blank with a beach towel or shampoo. Then let the next person repeat what you said and add an item, and so on until the list gets long enough to stump someone. You can alphabetize the list for more of a challenge, “ant spray, binoculars, Coke.”

Another game you can adjust for age differences is the “Opposites” game. State a noun and ask your child for its opposite: hot….cold, upwards…..downwards, depending on that child’s ability level.

Mix story time up with the “What Happens Next” game. You start to tell a story and get quickly to an exciting part. For example, “Suddenly…” and then pass it on to the next person to fill in the blank and continue the story, passing from person to person until the story ends.

Another version of this game is the “Unfortunately, Fortunately” game. You state something that goes on in a story, the second person says, “Unfortunately…” and states something unpleasant that happens in the story. Finally, the third person picks it up with “Fortunately…” and tries to resolve the dilemma left by the second person.

Be creative with these imaginative games with your family. More quality time equals less conflict time and happier, better adjusted kids. Take the time to play these games and your children will thank you.

Today’s young children know little, if anything, about the 50’s- A great decade that gave us Elvis, The Comets, The Platters, The Drifters, and Bill Haley. Hula hoops were a hit and poodle skirts were the trend. Hamburger and a chocolate shake anyone?

What better way to teach your kids about the 50’s than by throwing them a 50’s sock hop? You’ll need some great invitations. You could visit a record store and buy some inexpensive old 45’s. Then decorate them with paper and other trappings, making sure to write the details of the party, the dress code, and the date and time.

For the dress code, you may want to ask the girls to come in poodle skirts. Costume supply stores online are a convenient place to find those. For the guys, how about leather jackets, sweater vests, or a bowling shirt?

One thing you can do to add extra fun, since it is a sock hop, is to let everyone know there will be a competition for prizes based on the most elaborate, the most unusual, and the flashiest socks worn to the party.

Ahead of time, buy your own Elvis wigs and Pink Beehive wigs and don your guests with them, as they arrive. You will be met with many giggles and happy faces. Who doesn’t want to wear a cool wig to a party anyway?

Finally, decorate with a juke box theme. You can find paper goods and inflatable instruments, for example, to decorate inexpensively. Or, consider the looks of a 50’s diner with red checkered table cloths, serving root beer floats and hamburgers with French fries. Regardless of what you serve, your kids will never forget their own 50’s sock hop.

Parties draw crowds mainly because of the food. Yeah, it’s fun to go to a birthday party to see the balloons and streamers, but it’s the cake and ice cream that really brings the guests.

Football parties are the same way. Anyone can watch football at their own house, but if there are Super Bowl foods and treats being offered, that’s where the football fans will flock. If you’re planning your own party, you need to have some good ideas for the kind of snacks and treats that will keep your guests happy.

Bacon wrapped franks are very popular and will disappear as fast as you bring them out. All you need are little franks, bacon, ketchup, brown sugar, and a casserole dish. Wrap the little franks in the bacon and pour brown sugar over them all, in the dish, with a drizzle of ketchup.

Cook them in the oven, covered, for about 20-30 minutes, just long enough to crisp the bacon.  Just make sure you make enough, because they will go fast.

Another great snack, for dessert, is dirt and worms. You take chocolate pudding, crumbled up Oreos and gummy worms and serve them in a paper cup, with a spoon.

Finally, monkey cupcakes are a blast! Cut Nutter Butters in half, to make the monkey ears. Use half of a Nilla wafer for the background for the mouth, M&M’s for the eyes, and then frosting drizzle to make the lips, eyes, hair, and nose. Then, sit back and enjoy the compliments on your awesome party treats.

Holiday pictures of the baby in the Santa suit are becoming passé. Small children do not feel comfortable in those stuffy suits anyway, and you want your baby to smile for the photo. Babies who feel uncomfortable won’t be very cheerful for a photographer.

Small babies tend to spit up, as everyone knows. So, it is a good idea to place a large bib on your baby until just when the photo shoot begins. Better still, dress you baby in something different and then change him or her into the holiday outfit when you’re ready for pictures.

For little girls in the crawling stage, watch out for overly long dresses or skirts. Once you set your toddler down for a second, she may get caught on the hem and fall, making for an unhappy photo subject. Consider leggings, a shorter dress with tights, or a cute diaper cover under a small skirt.

For all toddlers, avoid white or light collars, as they stain easily. New shoes can be cute for a photo shoot, but only if you preserve them until that day, because toddlers are very effective at scuffing new shoes.

Finally, think comfort. You want to see that dimply grin in spite of the strange atmosphere and flashing lights. So, you’ll have to compromise somewhere. That ruffled dress or button up vest may need to be exchanged for softer clothing.

However, more and more clothing manufacturers are catching on to the fact that dress-up clothes don’t need to be uncomfortable. So, look around and see if you can find something comfortable that can still bring the “Oohs! And Aahs!” that you want, when you pass your baby’s holiday picture around.

High school graduation happens only once in a lifetime, at least for most of us. And for the young person, it may be the most exciting and at the same time nerve-wracking experience he or she has ever had. Make it special and a lot more fun by helping your teen throw a graduation costume party.

Start by learning the time the graduation ceremony is anticipated to end, so you can plan when the guests will arrive. Second, you will need to talk with your teenager about the theme. What about a 1920’s gangster party or an Arabian nights party?

Once you have your theme, you will need to send out invitations. Homemade invitations are a lot more fun than premade cards. If you have selected a theme for the costume party, you can make the invitations even more fun by using special paper and scrapbooking supplies to theme the invitations to match.

Make sure to indicate, on the invitations, that it is a themed costume party. The guests will need to know what they are expected to wear.

Now comes the fun part- planning the party. You will need food and drinks. If you have the Arabian nights party, why not plan on ordering some middle-eastern food to go? If you have the 1920’s gangster party, how about some cocktail glasses (with sprite) and some cocktail weenies to match? Finger foods are always a hit with the teens.

Lastly, you will need decorations to fit the theme of your party. For Arabian nights, how about some colorful pillows for seating? For the 1920’s gangster party, black and white will work for an old-fashioned piano lounge feel.

Halloween doesn’t need to cost a fortune. And homemade costumes don’t have to be that difficult to make either. Here is a really original and surprisingly simple solution for homemade Halloween costumes for your whole family. 

How about a Lego family? Dress up your whole family as a set of matching Lego blocks, without breaking the bank. Start by finding some unwanted boxes at a store or restaurant. Make sure you have one to fit from the neck to the legs of each family member.

Now, you’ll need to tape up the boxes, leaving a hole in the bottom for legs to come out and move freely, and cutting another hole in the top for the head to fit through. Finally, cut some circles into the front section of the box for the connector pieces.

You’ll make the Lego connector pieces with plastic Solo cups. Make sure they fit through the holes neatly. For smaller children, you’ll only need four holes, to make a smaller Lego. For adults or older children, use six holes and cups.

Finally, paint each Lego a different color like yellow, blue, green, red, and white, with the cups taped in place securely. Use spray paint for the easiest and quickest paint job. Once you finish that, all you need are some long sleeve shirts and some stretchy pants, tights, or sweat pants in matching colors. You will find that you get many compliments on your Lego family.

If you want to do something different for your child’s party this year, consider a cookie decoration party. Instead of doing the treats yourself, before everyone gets there, you can have the kids do most of the work!

Start with a cookie dough base. Oatmeal cookie dough makes a great cookie pizza. Roll the dough and make it into a pizza shape on a 12” pizza pan. If you don’t have a pizza pan, you can substitute with a cookie sheet or brownie pan.

Chocolate chips and coconut can be baked into the cookie pizza. Follow the instructions for the cookie recipe you selected. Once it is finished baking, let it cool before the guests arrive.

Before the party, you’ll need to buy some M&M’s, frosting (or make your own), food coloring (to mix the frosting in small bowls of different colors), candy corn, sprinkles, and/or other little treats to decorate the cookie pizza slices.

Slice the cookie pizza into individual slices and give them to each of the children to decorate. You may end up needing more than one cookie pizza, depending upon how many children you invite. Then, just sit back and supervise while they have a blast decorating their own slice of cookie pizza.

The 4^th of July is so much fun, with hot dogs, snow cones, and fireworks. If you decide to host a 4^th of July get-together, or just want to entertain your own family with some great ideas, look no further. Following are some great ideas for 4^th of July activities.

One fun game is a red, white, and blue balloon dart game. All you need is a bulletin board, patriotic balloons, and a few darts. Underneath the balloons, you can place small pieces of paper with notes indicating what prize has been won. Prizes can be candy bars or popsicles from a cooler.

Watermelon carving is a fun twist on a Halloween activity. Scoop out the watermelon with a melon baller, for serving at the party, then have fun carving watermelon quarters into faces, shapes, or animals.

Cupcake decorating is a blast at parties. You can socialize while you decorate, or help the kids decorate. All you need are homemade, or premade, cupcakes, frosting in red, white, and blue colors, and various sprinkles and candies in the same colors. Make sure you have a plastic tablecloth for easy cleanup.

Duck pond fishing is an enjoyable activity for a warm July day. Using a small wading pool, magnetized rubber ducks and a magnetic fishing pole, tape some laminated or plastic-coated slips of paper indicating prizes, or use colored markings on the bottom for the same reason. Games involving prizes make for lots of enjoyment at a 4^th of July party.

4^th of July parties are famous for the food. Usually, a barbeque is the order of the day, while the usual side dishes like potato salad, Jell-O, and chips and dip decorate the table.

This year, you can try something different. If you want to get some “Oohs!” and Aahs!” without a lot of time and expense, try some of the following ideas. You can start with some sugar cookies, premade, from a mix, or from scratch.

Decorate a number of the sugar cookies with one half red and the other white, until you have constructed the stripes section of the American flag. Then decorate the remainder with blue icing and white stars. Arrange them on a tray, to appear like the flag and people will think you put a lot of thought and effort into it.

Find a diagram online for carving melons into fun shapes. Watermelon baskets are fun, but you can also cut other shapes as well. Use a melon baller to shape the edible part of the melon, or better yet, cut 1-inch thick slices of the melon and use small star-shaped cookie cutters for bite-size pieces.

Stuffed potatoes are so much more fun if they are red, white, and blue. How do you do it? Simply use the potato as the white part, dye some sour cream with blue food coloring, and use diced red peppers to sprinkle on top. With a little ingenuity and a few inexpensive ingredients, you can make almost any dish patriotic.

Who doesn’t love a 4^th of July party? Handheld sparklers for the kids, a barbeque for the adults, and dropped hot dogs and unattended plates of food for the family dog.

IF you’re hoping for some creative ideas for this year’s patriotic bash, you can consider some of the following options. One thing that not many people do, but is really popular with the kids, is to rent an inflatable slide pool.

The kids can get all wet sliding down the inflatable slide to the pool below. Most of the inflatable rental companies set it all up for you. You just pay for it and sit back while they do the work.

Another option is to have a cookout competition. You can assign all your guests to bring a competitive dish, for a potluck, and then everyone can vote later on the best one. If you’re worried about a biased vote, just have all the kids vote on their favorite dish.

Old fashioned games can be some of the most memorable like potato sack or three-legged races, or egg and spoon team races. Or have you considered hiring a clown that can make animal balloons for the kids? Some of these ideas are so simple to implement, but can truly make a memorable 4^th of July party.

Whether your daughter is 5 or 15, you could throw a tea party she will never forget. Obviously, the age difference will call for some adjustments, but girls of all ages love tea parties.

So your child’s getting a little old for birthdays at the local fast food joint? Chicken nuggets for all just isn’t enough anymore? How about something a little more creative and fun without all the trans fats?

There is nothing like a summer party for kids! They love them! But, maybe you’re sick of the usual hired clown or rented inflatable. If you want to try something different, a summer costume party might be just the trick. Here are a few ideas to get your brainstorming session started.

Is your little princess about to have a birthday? Are you stumped when you think about what you might get her this year? Not to worry; Some of the most popular girls’ gifts are listed here.

Are you looking for a few ideas for presents for your little guy’s birthday? Some of the most popular toys for boys are listed here. If you are stumped, you should find something here that would fit the bill. It all depends on your child’s tastes and preferences.

There’s nothing more exasperating than kids lying on the couch whining of boredom the first day out from school. With the warm summer sun beckoning, you would think they could find something to do, but maybe it is just not happening.

Oh no! It’s time to plan another birthday party. You may be envisioning yourself running for last minute balloon pickups and sweating as you hang streamers 5 minutes before guests arrive. You may be worried about whether or not the kids, especially your child, will enjoy what you have prepared.

Every year you hear about some of the parties your child has been invited to and some of the creative things the parents put together for each party. The last thing you want is for your child’s party to be the neighborhood dud.

Boys love super heroes. Even grown men can’t help themselves when Spiderman or the Hulk is on the TV screen. So, whether your son is 4 or 12, you could plan a great Super Hero party.

Your child deserves a great party. But, not just any party; you want a really fun and unique dress up party. Perhaps you just need some ideas to point you in the right direction.

Hello and Welcome to the JustKidCostumes.com blog.  Our blog will provide lots of tips and advice on not only Kids Costumes, dress up, and Kids Halloween costumes, but also on party planning, creative play, and dress-up ideas and parties.