July 7, 2021 by admin

Introductions: Practice Meeting New Friends

Rusty and Ruby don’t just play side-by-side — they play and work as a team to “combine it and design it” together.

As children progress from playing near each other (parallel play) to playing collaboratively with one another, the idea of “friendship” becomes more important. Learning to play together often takes practice — and learning to sustain friendships does, too.

Pretend play can help kids get ready for these meaningful interactions!

Parent/Caregiver Tip: Pretend play can boost children’s creativity, language skills, their awareness of other people’s perspectives, their understanding of feelings, and their ability to manage their emotions. (Source: The Need for Pretend Play in Child Development, Scientific American)

Allow Me to Introduce Myself (For Big Kids)

Print Activity

Age Groups: Big Kids

Skills: Expression, friendship, Trust

Instructions

Let’s imagine that you’re visiting someplace or someone new. It could be a favorite book character, someone famous, or even an alien in outer space.
I’ll play the role of the person (or space alien) who you meet. What would you say to introduce yourself?
What questions do you want to ask?
What will you share about yourself?

Vocabulary

Introduce - to make known

Name - what a person is called

Allow Me to Introduce Myself (For Toddlers and Little Kids)

Print Activity

Age Groups: Little Kids, Toddlers

Skills: Expression, Trust

Materials

Stuffed animals, dolls, or puppets

Instructions

Let’s play with your stuffed animals! You pretend to be one animal and I’ll pretend to be the other.
Let’s imagine our stuffed animals are meeting for the first time. How do they introduce themselves? What should they say?
What does your stuffed animal want to know about mine? I wonder if they have anything in common.

Vocabulary

Introduce - to make known

Name - what a person is called

Allow Me to Introduce Myself (For Babies)

Print Activity

Age Groups: Babies

Skills: Expression, Trust

Materials

Stuffed animals, dolls, or puppets

Instructions

Let’s play with your stuffed animals!
This stuffed animal can wave and say “hi” to you! It might even kiss you on the nose!
Can you wave and say "hi" back?
If your child is very verbal, try to extend the conversation. Have the stuffed animal share their name and encourage your child to tell the stuffed animal his or her name.