Have you ever given a child a really cool present, and then they end up playing with the box?
If you’ve ever had any interaction with Pre-schoolers, then you probably have seen this happen! This picture is my 3-year-old son…surrounded by oodles of age-appropriate toys (some of the younger toys are for his sister). And what does he want to play with?
A big cardboard tube.
And why not? Preschool aged children just explode with imagination. To me, he’s playing with a piece of trash. But to him, he’s playing with a sword, a telescope, an oar, a sliding board. He even became a little scientist and wanted to see what would happen if he dropped a small ball inside the tube and held it at different angles…over, and over, and over, and over….
Needless to say, preschoolers are creative with their play. By this age, they start to enjoy interacting with friends, want to play dress-up, repeat nursery rhymes, and put together puzzles. They’re still imitating the adults around them (so be careful what they see you do and say!), and they’re filled with questions.
The next time you see an NCLEX style question about appropriate activities for pre-schoolers, just picture my son…and choose the activity HE would want to play!
Nicole is a Professional Nursing Tutor with over 15 years experience, and the founder of Your Nursing Tutor. She has a BSN, and an MA in Clinical Psychology. Nicole specializes in providing easy-to-follow, proven study methods (like the Silver Bullet Study System) that transform frustrated nursing students into calm, confident nurses! When she’s not helping students through her Live Tutoring Membership, Nicole loves spending time with her husband, homeschooling their 6 kids, and staring at sunflowers.