Examined the effects of narrative statements used to evoke imaginal elaborations on children's recall. Found that children generated images that involved multiple referents and that children's memory performance was facilitated when their imaginal constructions were based on material created by themselves rather than on descriptions provided by…

Tested whether 2- to 4-year olds could reason with incongruent syllogisms when encouraged to use their imagination. Randomly assigned 2-, 3-, and 4-year olds to one of four conditions (no cue, word cue, fantasy planet, or imagery) and presented syllogistic reasoning problems with incongruent information. Found that in imagination conditions, 2-…

Expressing the imagination dramatically is a step toward refining and shaping thought and behavior. Imagination is a part of the complex interaction of thought and action and has a place in the knowledge base. Drama is a direct expression of the imagination in action. In drama, the thought--the imaginings--are expressed in action and that action…

Through examples of both a child's imagination and pretend play activities, demonstrates how a child's imagination is the thinking function that sets the stage for play, while actual play consists of a child's understanding and representation of reality. (HOD)

Results supported Piaget's viewpoint that mental imagery and general symbolic functioning are dependent on the growth of intelligence with respect to the preadolescent period. (Author)

A study involving three children with impaired hearing, three typical children, and three showing intellectual advancement, found children scoring above 130 IQ at age four demonstrated significantly advanced pretend play as toddlers. Mothers of the high IQ children engaged in scaffolding behaviors involving higher stages of pretend transformation,…

This study compared perceptions of relationships with parents, best friends, siblings, and imaginary companions among 4-year-olds with invisible friends, object companions, or no imaginary companion. Findings indicated that parents afforded instrumental help, and siblings were associated with conflict. Real and imaginary friendship provisions were…

Argues that the area in which the artistic development of young children can be helped immediately, without awaiting teacher retraining in the various arts, is story telling: if children are continually asked to tell stories, and if delight is shown in their stories, then the stories improve; eventually children want to write them down. (Author/JM)

Evidence which suggests that pretend activities become increasingly independent of the presence of realistic objects is examined in this paper. Results of research on pretend behavior in children 1 1/2 - 2 years of age are described and analyzed. Striking changes in pretend behavior are shown to occur during the second year of life. Pretend play…

Tested the ability of 19 older adults, given additional training in a mental imagination technique, to approach the performance of 16 younger adults on serial word recall tasks. Results indicated that negative age differences in older adults' performance were substantial, resistant to extensive practice, and applicable to all subjects. (BC)

The learning activities in this handbook were taken directly from Tucson Early Education Model (TEEM) classrooms and designed to foster intellectual and language development. More specifically, these activities are designed to foster linguistic awareness, sensory perception, curiosity, and imagination, to guide the child in differentiating fantasy…

A dissertation proposal involved a study to observe spontaneous behavior of children in interaction with materials in order to gain understanding of the factors that influence classificatory and imaginative behavior in free play. Children at two levels of ability in terms of classification skills were observed in interaction with materials at two…

Evaluative intervention research studies in pretend play are investigations that examine the potential of imaginative play in young children to demonstrate a relationship between play and cognitive, social, and emotional growth. A review of the research indicates that children who engage in imaginative play yield higher test scores than those in…

In the field of science, the meaning of insight can be understood by looking at theories which deal with universal laws that have fundamental significance for the totality of matter, independently of conditions of time and space. (JN)

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)