How dress up play boosts children's self esteem
June 1st, 2016 \\ NewsComments are off for this post
As a little girl growing up in the 70’s my favourite playtime activity was dress up play and pretending to be someone I admired. I had hardly any hair until I was 3 years old and when it grew it was white blonde, short and curly. I was desperate to have long hair like my nan back then….she used to wear it coiled up on top of her head in a very fashionable beehive and when she took out all of the pins it was so long and straight….the exact opposite of the tight curls that covered my scalp.
One day nan indulged my desire for long hair by making me a big long plait out of a pair of her panty hose. I put it on and was immediately overjoyed by the sensation of having long hair! I swished it, flicked it and spun it around like a propeller with my arms out wide and I felt so excited, elated even and so so free! It was a totally new sensation and I loved it! My imagination went wild as I played out different characters (all with long hair) and got hours of entertainment out of a pair of pantyhose and my own world of make believe. I call this process accessing the ‘magic’.
Writing this I am able to remember and reenact the sensations I felt as a 3 year old playing this dress up game! How amazing is that? As we grow up and leave childhood behind us there are still millions of opportunities for dress up play and role play. As a mother and a business woman and someone who loves fitness, meditation, socialising and nature, I am constantly changing my clothes, my hair, my attitude and my tone of voice to match the occassion. I wear many costumes and probably indulge the fantasy side of my creative self more so than many people I know, as my business today requires me to dress up in costumes and entertain children.
What my life has taught me is that it is so important to explore other characters and view life from different perspectives in our quest to really understand and know ourselves. It’s so important to connect with our own inner magic, listen to and know ourselves and use the creative imaginations we are born with and that we use in play naturally as children, at any age and stage of life. Children are naturally connected to the magic we all have inside us. They haven’t yet been tarnished by life. They are pure, creative and free little beings. I want to help them understand how wonderful it is to be themselves. To teach them how wonderful it is to dress up as something else, explore their imagination and then come back to the realisation that it’s also just as wonderful to be me.
I am Fairy Mel the Mumpreneur Marketer and Children’s Entertainer and I am on a mission to cultivate creativity, imagination and healthy self-esteem in as many children as possible. My desire is to entertain, delight, make people smile, empower children to be themselves, spread the magic, foster belief in make believe, heal through happiness, spread joy and love.
I have created Kids Dress Up Box Program to allow as many young kids as possible connect with their own inner magic, connect with themselves and find their happy place. If you enjoyed this article and know a child in a child care centre who might enjoy this please visit www.melinabox.wix.com/kidsdressupbox and let your centre know they can book online or call 0402794130.
