Inspire Imaginary Play at Pretend City

As a kid, I remember climbing trees, digging for worms in the mud and riding my bike until seeing the first shine of the street lights. My friends and I would pretend we were international spies or police officers monitoring the neighborhood on bikes. My fondest memories as a child were doing imaginary play. 

I felt so passionate about how imaginary play impacted my life that I went to College for a degree in Early Childhood Education. I became a preschool teacher and loved sharing with children my passion for play. When teaching, it would surprise me how many children did not do imaginary play and I felt concerned that it might be something that is slowly fading away. More and more children are doing their imaginary play in virtual worlds on computer and video games - forgetting about how traditional imaginary play can help with critical brain development.

When I first started having children, my older son was not interested in imaginary play. I would build extreme structures out of blocks, create play houses and did whatever it took to inspire him to play. I had to become a child again for him to start enjoying dramatic play. Slowly, over time and after the birth of my daughter, who embraced imaginary play, he started to enjoy it. He would enjoy getting dressed-up like a prince in his daddy's work shirt while visiting my daughter and her friends at a tea party.

When Pretend City Children's Museum opened in Irvine, I immediately took my children to visit. My older son was already 8, and I was unsure how he would respond to a typical "preschool environment." His younger brother and sister immediately immersed themselves into the environment spending the entire day playing within the different worlds of Pretend City.

I saw my older son sitting on a bench; clearly he was the only child in the museum over the age of eight. I put on a fire hat and pretended I was driving a fire engine toward him. He gave me that look that I get when I am starting to embarrass my children. I continued to drive my pretend fire engine around the museum, while watching him look around to see who was watching - but it was museum full of parents and children pretending. He slowly got off the bench and starting playing dramatic play with me.

We had the best day putting on shows on the stage, gardening in the pretend garden, grocery shopping in the market and visiting the dental office. It was not only a magical day of dramatic play, but also a powerful bonding experience with my children.

Since that day, all my children have enjoyed visiting Pretend City on a monthly basis. My younger son Tyler was able to get free developmental screenings. During one of the screenings, we were able to learn that he needed the glasses that he now wears.

Pretend City allows children to explore and play in an environment similar to their neighborhood. The museum has recreated parts of the community within the museum by creating a grocery store similar Ralphs, pictures of Newport Beach Penninsula on the wall and much more.

Pretend City is a magical place that is supporting children's growth and development within the community. 

Pretend City
29 Hubble Irvine, CA 92618 
949.428.3900 

Hours:
Monday 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Tues. - Sun. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Ticket Prices
10:00 A.M. TO 4:00 P.M.

Infant to 12 months: Free
Children and adults $11
Military family $8

AFTER 4 P.M.

Infant to 12 months: Free
Children and adults $5.50