In my busy harried state of a million chores and other nonsensical responsibilities, my two younger children, 5 and 2 years of age, presented themselves to me for a much necessary inspection of their attire. Why the need you think? Well because they had decided to climb Sigiriya rock and did I think the hat, scarf, back pack, Wellington boots topped off with the our cook's prized broom, as a needed walking stick, was enough of what they need for their journey. They were explorers for the day and they needed my mummy blessing before they set off on their journey.

Living in the heart of Colombo with not enough a slight hill in sight, the girls were in the throes of make believe play on that lazy Saturday afternoon, and it was a glorious sight to watch. Of course one had to also participate in equal enthusiasm or face the wrath, therefore I gave directions, some cookies for the road and set them off on their way in the direction of Sigiriya, which was somehow in their room. When children participate in make believe play, it is indeed a wondrous sight to see them using their imagination, role playing and making decisions as to what to do next. In present times, make believe play is taking a back seat to instantaneously gratifying electronic devices. Experts in fact encourage children to engage in these moments of imagination and make believe. At each age group imaginative play triggers a different set of learning tools in the child. Here are some reasons as to why you should encourage tea parties, doctor clinics or even trips to Sigiriya!

1. Children of the 1 to 3 age group sometimes need to be shown how to play. In this instance you will have be one of the participants and show how one can cook with pots and pans etc. This will develop their mobility and even their speech as you encourage them to assume a role. At this age try and buy toys that they can use in their play, tea sets, dress up clothes and so on.

2. When children are asked to use their imagination and play this opens the door to many possibilities. Firstly it distracts them from their T.V's and laptops, then are encourage to think, brain storm, make formative decisions, which actually are life skills in later years. At this point they might just be pretending to be a fireman, rescuing a stranded sister on top on a cupboard, but in fact they are learning how to attack a problem and solve it.

3. Make believe when played with others in a group encourages unity, teaches children to cooperate and get along with other play members. It teaches them about giving others a chance, team unity, empathy to others, dealing with disagreements and so forth.

4. Creative play also helps a child to follow on a task they have started. Depending on the play at hand, encourage them to build their own props etc for the imaginative play starts from the moment the idea came into existence and the end result is not what we are looking but in fact the lessons learnt through the journey of it.

Allowing children that time to engage in play is very important. This is an activity that they can do only in their formative years, but it instills many qualities that they need as adults. So don't overcrowd their schedules but infact give them that time to be just children. I'm off to have tea on top of Sigirya with my two beautiful daughters. Happy parenting!

By Mayuri Jayasinghe