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Long gone are the days when parents or teachers worried that a child’s imaginary friend was proof that they had no ‘real’ friends or that they were displaying signs of psychological trauma or social deficiency. It’s now accepted that it is not uncommon, nor in itself worrying, for young children to have an imaginary pal.

But how about actively encouraging them to have one?

Everyone should see the world through Tess' eyes...
My five-year-old niece lives in an exciting world (last week she found a polar bear in her shoe), everyone is a potential friend (the window cleaner has an invite to her birthday party) and she's not afraid to dream big (meet the next Queen of England). She's also not afraid to show affection, appreciation or love.

Yesterday, as we walked home from school she told me all about her teacher...

What a treat I had this Mother's Day with a trip to the Spa for a relaxing massage. Of course, the 'Spa' was my front room and there was no relaxing music or incense burning, but my youngest was taking it very seriously and I did get a glass of fizz when it was over - I've paid a lot of money in the past for treatments that weren't that much better!

If you feel like there is nothing more exhausting than pretend play, you’re not alone!  Most of us have long since lost the desire and energy to create an imaginary world within our daily lives.  We have too much on our minds and too much to accomplish in a day to spend hours recreating the story of Cinderella or fighting imaginary fires. But it can be done, and what's more, it can be done in just five seconds a day!

The American Academy of Pediatrics has just prescribed a minimum of and hour of play per day. But the power of play is something kids have always recognized.   

Last week, at a birthday party in the park, a friend’s 7-year old came running to show the bloody scrape on his knee.  Mom bent down to take a look, and just as she was about to offer to clean it up and get him a Band-Aid, he straightened up.  “No, it’s ok,” he said, “It doesn’t hurt when I’m playing!”. And with that bit of wisdom imparted, he ran back to the play structure...

At Pyjama Drama our emphasis is on role play and imagination, not performance. Although in many children we see the blossoming of a lifelong love of drama, we're not deliberately setting out to teach the children to be actors and performers. Drama, pretending and role play are some of the most instinctive things that children so has many, many benefits. At Pyjama Drama our emphasis is clear - developing skills for life!

6th June 2016

I've just arrived home after a whirlwind week in Malaysia where I delivered Pyjama Drama to over a hundred different children. Wow, what a week. The weather was glorious, the food divine and the people wonderfully welcoming, but it was my experience teaching the children of Penang that had the biggest impact. 

23rd June 2015

Every parent knows that education is important for our little ones once they get to the right age. But play is just as important and it's not only for the very young - let's not forget about it once they start school. Play is vital at any age for developing creativity, problem-solving skills, and self-confidence. It helps children develop socially - partly because they're often interacting with others when they play, but even solo play helps them learn ways to express themselves clearly. It helps them emotionally develop as they learn about relationships and consequences; and of course, physically develop whilst they're running around getting stronger, and keeping fit and healthy without even trying.

14th April 2015

Long before computer consoles, touch pads and interactive media grasped our children’s attention they would happily surround themselves with an array of magical, mystical and, yes completely fabricated settings. With a selection of friends all of whom only ever existed in the land of make believe, but were never considered any less important than real people in the eyes of the child who created them, imagination was and still is, for the most part, an integral portion of the development process in children. Being encouraged to role play is proven to have a positive effect on several crucial areas of child growth including; cognitive development, communication and language development, social development and lastly, physical development.

22nd December 2014

We all know the age-old saying that children would rather play with the cardboard box than the actual gift inside and many of us have probably experienced it too. That cardboard box could be the fastest car in the universe or the entrance to a secret underground cave and that sparkly dress in the box? Never as sparkly as the one in your imagination.