Pretend Play

Playtime is important for kids... right?

Certainly research has led to that conclusion for decades.

But now a Virginia study has discovered that imagination and play might not be having quite the effect on kids many of us assumed it did. 

NOTE: This is an encore presentation which originally aired September 17, 2012.

Guest:
Angeline Lillard, Ph.D. - Research psychologist specializing in early childhood development. Lead author of the new study The Impact of Pretend Play on Children's Development: A Review of the Evidence (Psychology Bulletin). Author of Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius (Oxford University Press). Professor of Psychology and Director of the The Early Childhood Development Lab at the University of Virginia.