Deals with the changes in imagination that take place from childhood to adulthood. (CB)

This paper discusses the role that imagination plays in child development with an imaginary dialogue between Sigmund Freud and a child. (CB)

Theorizes that dramatic play involves and can potentially develop the three conditions that promote and characterize creativity--interaction, transformation, and imagination. Notes that children involved in dramatic play are enhancing their creativity and potential for creative work. (TM)

Untutored dramatic play (free, undirected play) and tutored dramatic play (creative drama) involve interaction, symbolic transformation, and imagination as children enact roles in imaginary situations. Both types of play serve the child's artistic, emotional, and intellectual needs. They differ in the degree of spontaneity, consistency of play,…

Presents findings concerning the role of symbolic play. Assumes that symbolic play has seven functions in the child's development: cognitive, creative, ordering, stimulative, social, expressive, and substitutive. Considers play as a phenomenon that prepares children's abilities through symbolic play. (BAC)

Reviews research indicating that children's writing moves in an age-related sequence from the literal and factual to the metaphorical and affective and shows a growth in awareness of the psychological characteristics of the self and others. Presents an analysis of children's stories that provides guidelines for teachers and researchers to use in…

Examines the differences between imagination, creativity, and fantasy, and presents the relationship of imagination to creativity. Suggests that the basic distinction between imagination and fantasy is that while imagination is related to reality, fantasy is related to unreality. The link between imagination and creativity lies in the opportunity…

Describes four types of play training that teachers can use to help children incorporate into their play the elements of role playing, make-believe transformations, social interaction, verbal communication, and persistence. Types of play training include modeling, verbal guidance, thematic-fantasy training, and imaginative play training. Using…

Learning to imagine is a crucial step in symbol-making in early childhood. Uses examples of children's symbol-making to illustrate the process by which children understand the world around them. Considers how effectively aspects of children's learning environments facilitate children's exploration and their development of imagination. (MDM)

A small but significant proportion of preschoolers have imaginary companions who serve many different developmental functions. Prevalence and related demographic and environmental factors surrounding the phenomenon of imaginary companions and implications for health care professionals are discussed. (Author/DST)

Explores the similarities between paintings of the abstract expressionists and those of young children. Similarities include total surface coverage, disregard for details, direct application of pigment, disregard for visual perspective, and use of the painting surface as a frontal plane. (CB)

Examined the effect of sociodramatic play on the literacy learning of first graders. Found that sociodramatic play provided a vehicle through which the players practiced what they knew about literacy and provided an opportunity to think about literacy in the context of various play themes. Adult mediation enhanced the players' incorporation of…

A review of the research on dramatic play indicates that it provides personal expression and catharsis of inner desires; helps the child to distinguish between reality and fantasy; provides for children's social adaptation; provides a dynamic for learning; and enhances creativity through interaction, transformation, and imagination. (TJQ)

Investigated North American children's and adults' familiarity with, and liking for, fairy tales. Results support the hypotheses that children's liking for fairy tales relates significantly to their involvement in imagining activities and that more general imagining involvements are likely to be associated with, or to mediate differences in, the…

In April 2002, there were three hundred and eighty-six children living in prison with their mothers in South Africa, four of which were inmates of the Pretoria Female Prison. The interaction patterns between these four mothers and their children was investigated by means of individual interviews, observation, field notes and the Marschak…