Why are role play centres important for children under 5?
From birth to age 5, a child’s brain develops more rapidly, than at any other time in life. A child’s experiences in the first few years of life helps shape how their brain develops. At our indoor play centre we provide a safe space for children to use imaginative play to grow and discover the world around them. A unique children’s role play centre experience where ideas know no limits, and where imagination comes to life.
Under 5's Sessions
At our indoor play centre, we run 90-minute play sessions throughout the day for children of all ages. Children grow and develop at their own pace which is why we do not have an age limit. However, we do like to have the option of an under 5’s play session for the little ones!
Toddler sessions are perfect for younger ones to explore Tiny Town’s space, letting them grow their confidence through imaginative play at their own pace.
Our Under 5’s sessions are held every Monday, Tuesday and Friday at 9:30am – 11am at both our play centres in Sheffield and Chesterfield.
Older children are welcome to attend all our other play sessions!
What is Role Play?
Role play is an important part of every child’s development. Children engage in activities where they can take on different roles or play different characters that mimic real life or imaginary experiences. Using creativity and imagination, children can bring these roles to life!
Why Role Play is Important for the Early Years
There are many benefits of indoor play centres for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Learning through play is a crucial part of a child’s early years as it lays down the foundations for their development.
Our Tiny Town indoor play centre provides children the freedom and opportunities to explore creativity & play in a safe and secure environment. Each area of our indoor play centre is designed carefully with the Early Years Foundation stage in mind, meaning children can learn the essential skills, needed for their growth and development, through role play!
Creativity and Imagination
Imagination is a vital aspect of a child’s development. Role play provides the perfect platform for its growth! Children can enhance and engage in imaginative play when taking part in role playing in each area of Tiny Town. Taking on different characters, children can create imaginative scenarios, exploring and experimenting with different roles.
At our Tiny Town Indoor Play Centre, the possibilities are endless! Children can become a pirate sailing the seas, a doctor looking after the poorly people, a firefighter protecting the town, a chef in the kitchen, and so much more! A child’s creative thinking skills are expanded as they can develop a deeper understanding of the world around them.
Communication and Language Development
As children engage in pretend play, they communicate and interact with others. This exchange in conversation helps develop their vocabulary, grammar, speech and storytelling skills.
Combining language skills development with play time offers the opportunity for a child to build on their vocabulary. By using new words in different contexts and situations, such as “stir’, “mix” “measure”, “cook” in a role play kitchen, your child’s confidence in their communication skills will continue to grow.
Social and Emotional Development
Social skills can be improved when engaging in role play scenarios. Role play encourages cooperation, sharing and turn-taking, as children work together to create and act out imaginative scenarios. For naturally shy or introverted children, our indoor play centre provides a safe space for them to come out of their shell and build on their confidence through role play.
Toddlers develop empathy and learn how to cooperate, become responsible and share responsibility. Imaginative play allows children to experience and express emotions and deal with them in a positive way.
Cognitive Thinking and Problem Solving
Imaginative play presents children with a variety of different problems to solve. Children can recreate the scenes that they have in their heads and then apply practical solutions. For example, they might wrap a bandage around a doll’s knee, imagining that she’s hurt herself, and then provide medical treatment.
Through play, children develop their cognitive skills: memory, attention span and information processing. Role playing encourages children to actively come up with new and exciting scenarios!
Physical Development
Role play actively benefits a child’s physical development in many ways! A child’s motor skills, coordination and spatial awareness can all be developed when engaging in imaginative play.
Fine motor skills involve the coordination of the small muscles in a child’s hands and fingers, babies and toddler will be learning to use these. We have dressing up clothes in our Theatre with zips, buttons and Velcro so children can practice their fine motor skills as they dress themselves independently. And tools in our Salon, Hospital, Vets etc that can be gripped by little hands and fingers to develop a child’s fine motor skills.
Gross motor skills require while body movement using the muscles in the arms, legs and torso. They are important for everyday activities such as running, walking, jumping and sitting upright. These can be demonstrated in areas of our Tiny Town play centre. Small chairs and tables in our Café and House help children use their core strength to sit upright and achieve a good posture, reinforcing their physical development and gross motor skills. We have lots of vehicles for children to ride on, strengthening the muscles in their legs as they push themselves along our road. Balancing skills can be enhanced when building a tower of foam bricks in our Construction Site.