Place items that can be used for a thematic unit of dramatic play in a box. Set it in an area designated for the activity. Decide what to include in the box based on your preschool classroom unit of study or choose items that appeal to your child's pretend play interests. Fill a box with inexpensive dress-up items so children can take on adult roles during playtime. Place infant-care items and baby-dolls in a box to promote baby-care activities. Pack a prop box with medical type things--toy doctor kits, a box of band-aids and small blankets. Encourage kitchen play with a box of plastic food and dishes. Add smaller prop kits to the larger thematic boxes from time to time to facilitate a specific play activity. Place pizza boxes, aprons and an "order pad" and pencil with kitchen props to play pizza parlor.
Take note of the opportunities for children's dramatic play activities in their outdoor play space. When choosing playground or backyard equipment, keep in mind the possibilities for pretend play inherent in the actual equipment. Select climbers with playhouse-type areas beneath the climbing structures. Buy a playhouse specifically designed for housekeeping play, or simply provide a tent, made by slinging a blanket over a clothesline.
Include a sandbox, equipped with vehicles for the construction of little worlds. Plastic people and animals added to the sandbox offer your youngsters a wealth of pretend possibilities.
Although children spontaneously create dramatic play scenarios that are sparked by their vivid imaginations and nudged along by the introduction of prop boxes and structures in the environment, it is also appropriate for an adult to suggest and participate in a pretend-play activity. Provide large cardboard building blocks for little ones who celebrate Christmas. Help them build a block chimney for Santa, then ask a child to use more blocks to quietly place "gifts" as the other children pretend to sleep. Let children practice the Christmas eve ritual to alleviate the anxiety that accompanies their anticipation of Santa's arrival. Teach children to play "dentist's office" and go through the imaginary steps of a successful visit with them if a first appointment is scheduled. Use a stuffed animal as a "new puppy" if children are preparing for the arrival of a pet. Play with them as they learn the basics of puppy care.