Dressing up allows children to invent and inhabit characters and transform into someone very different from themselves. Even if they do not use dressing up as a way of role playing often children enjoy the physical experience of feeling different textures and seeing themselves and others transformed.

It is possible to buy specific dressing up costumes in child sizes (nursed tabards, princess dresses) and these can often be found in Early Years settings. These purpose made costumes leave no creative gaps for the children to set the agenda of who they will become. An adult observing children dressing up and role play will often witness highly creative scenarios that have been stimulated by the feel of a velvet curtain or the wearing of a floppy hat that would not have occurred with a mini nurse’s outfit.

A dressing up box can be anything large and relatively strong. A strong cardboard box, a blanket box, an old suitcase or a large wicker basket would all be ideal. A mirror is very important so that children can see their transformation!

It is an added bonus that children also learn about the different textures of fabrics through this sort of play, so try and include materials such as velvet, fun fur, tweed and silk and satin etc. Ask the children to describe to you how the different fabrics look and feel.

Things to look out for:

• Colourful fabric both plain and patterned.
• Fabric that moves in different ways
• Textured fabric such as sequined or furry
• Strange or outrageous clothes that might provoke the question, who would wear this?
• Hats of different shapes and sizes
• Bags for work, shopping bags, evening bags, suitcases for travelling
• Scarves that can be used as headgear, belts, skirts, tails
• Gloves are very sensory and transforming.
• Shoes that change the way you walk

Why don’t you send us examples of what you’ve created? You can e-mail us here.