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.