What is the age range of the products in the skill?

Early Learning Centre products that encourage imaginative play start from 6 months and go up to age 3+. However, there are products for a wide range of ages in between.

What are the 5 key elements of imaginative skills?

Develop problem solving skills by overcoming obstacles and challenges in pretend scenarios.

Nurture creativity by exploring and inventing new worlds and scenarios.

Promote self-discovery by experimenting with different roles and behaviours.

Encourage cognitive development by creating roles which require children to think abstractly and plan ahead.

Helps emotional development allowing children to explore and express their emotions.

What type of products fit within the skill

There are many products throughout our range that encourage children to engage in imaginative play. With a wide variation of suitable ages and play patterns, there are lots of different ways our toys encourage growing imaginations.

Kids Dress Up

Open ended toys are a great way to encourage imaginative play. There are lots of open-ended toys in the Early Learning Centre range such as building blocks, art supplies and costumes. We have a wide range of dress up options to encourage children to engage in imaginative play. Whether they want to be a fairy, princess, pirate or doctor children can explore and create different characters.

Role Play Toys

Encouraging children to take part in roleplay-based play is a great way to introduce children to imaginative play. We have a wide range of roleplay toys in ELC for example our cash register. The cash register is a great toy for simulating real life scenarios. Children can be play out lots of different roles as the cash register features a working microphone, a removable chip and pin machine, a scanner, an opening/closing till, and an open/close sign.

Musical Toys

Providing children with simple instruments from a young age can inspire imaginative play. There is a wide range of musical instruments within the ELC range suited to a variety of age groups and abilities. The Echo mic allows children to lose themselves in a world of make believe as they sing their favourite songs or put on a show. The Echo Mic can be used as a tool to encourage children to make up songs and dances using their imaginations and to experiment with sounds.

Please remember that it is important to choose toys that are appropriate for your child's developmental stage and age. To learn more about your child’s milestones, have a read of our article 'Guide to Your Baby’s Developmental Milestones'.

There are many toys and games by the Early Learning Centre to help you build on your child’s early development. Discover all our Learning Skills to continue their learning journey.