This month the children in school-age one have been interested the role of a veterinarian. To scaffold their curiosity, we brought materials for the children to engage in dramatic play to see what they already know about veterinarians. We asked some thought-provoking questions to see what the children already knew. Some children understood that veterinarians are doctors for pets while other children mentioned that they are different from “people” doctors. As they opened the doctor kit, some children could identify what a specific tool was called and the use for it. When they couldn’t identify what the tool was, we named the tool and explained it’s use.
“What does a thermometer do?”, “It checks the temperature of the animals just how we check your temperature when you are not feeling well.”.
“What is this?”, “A stethoscope. It checks your heart.”
By introducing new words to the children, this enhances their literacy skills and increases their understanding of the tool’s intended purpose.
One evening during indoor learning, two children engaged in some pretend play. One child wanted to be the nurse and the other child was the vet. “Doctor Fife, come and look at this animal.”. Doctor Fife replied, “Let me check his heart.”. The doctor checked the bears heart and with excitement he said “The bear is healthy!” He proceeded to check the other animals. When he was finished, Doctor Fife brought out the stuffed animals back to their owners. “Your horse and bear are healthy!” Nurse Ruke handed Doctor Fife another animal. Doctor Fife took the bunny’s temperature and said “Oh no, the bunny has a fever.”.
Pretend play allows children to take on various roles and act out different scenarios to deepen their understanding of the world around them. This experience allowed the children to build new understandings from concepts that were already familiar to them and allowed for further learning and discussion among each other.
