Young children learn about their relationships to objects, people and future social roles through pretend play. This might include building a castle out of branches and tarps, shooting the enemy with their fingers or cuddling a doll in preparation for parenthood. Preschool children with cerebral palsy, however, are not able to easily engage in these sensory motor activities that stimulate their imaginations and develop social skills.
Step 1
Make the environment adaptable to play activities. Children who use wheelchairs, braces or walkers must have access to pretend play materials while seated in a chair or positioned on the floor. A play table that can be filled with water, mud or sand should be high enough for the child to position the wheelchair close in order to reach inside for pretend boats, fish, diggers and other toys. If the child sits in a regular chair, be sure that her feet are flat on the floor and the chair has arm rests for support. Some children may find that sitting in a corner on the floor provides adequate support. Locate play food, puppets and dolls within reach. These toys do not require a great deal of dexterity to grasp and move. A small clothesline strung between two chairs can be use to hang up doll clothes.
Preschool age children love to engage in pretend play while moving. Children with cerebral palsy may be best able to swing while sitting inside a tire swing that they can wrap their arms around, or an inner tube swing while on their bellies with hands and feet touching the floor. An adult can help push if they aren't able to propel themselves independently. This is a great time to encourage children to pretend they are sea monsters, aliens or flying animals. Bean bags can be thrown as they "feed" ocean creatures.
Step 2
Create a social pretend play environment. Parents or teachers must encourage the other children to give the child with cerebral palsy extra time to move, speak and respond to others. Children with cerebral palsy may play best with only one or two other children at a time, and may find that older children make very good pretend play partners. Provide duplicates of the same toys so that the other children aren't tempted to take them away from the child who can't move as quickly. Encourage children to take on roles of various animals or Disney characters by providing pictures, music and costumes. Costumes that are on the large side and have Velcro fasteners or are different types of hats are the easiest to put on.
Step 3
Adapt play materials to address a child's poor coordination or weak grasp. Using heavier objects provides sensory feedback to the muscles. Instead of using blocks to build towers, children can stack small boxes filled with sand. Enlarging a Harry Potter wand by taping foam around one end make it easier to grasp. Children with impaired speech may pat pictures or press buttons that activate animal sounds, providing an alternative to making their own animal sounds. Like all toys, the best ones can be used in a variety of ways and promote creativity. When children with cerebral palsy are given learning environments that encourage pretend play, they too can be an astronaut, wizard or mermaid.
References
- "The Recycling Occupational Therapist", Barbara Smith, M.S., OTR/L; 1997.
- "Play as Exploratory Learning", Mary Reilly, 1974.
