Lesson Idea | Pretend Play Lesson Plan: PINKALICIOUS & PETERRIFIC®

Children explore the meaning of imaginary or pretend play and then make up and act out stories in this PINKALICIOUS & PETERRIFIC® lesson plan. Inspired by two video excerpts from the PBS KIDS series PINKALICIOUS & PETERRIFIC®, children create a new, fantastical adventure and tell it using words and pictures. Next, they create a different scenario by role-playing animals. Using paper bag puppets that they have made, students reenact their stories as they share with the class.

Lesson Summary

In this PINKALICIOUS & PETERRIFIC® lesson plan, children watch a video excerpt from the show, and then talk about “real” versus “imaginary.” Students then make up an adventure that they can describe using words and pictures. After another video excerpt, they practice using their imagination and storytelling skills to role-play various animals. Together with a partner, they develop a narrative using the animals they’ve imitated. You can use this lesson plan to help encourage and channel children’s active imaginations.

Time Allotment

Three or more class periods

Learning Objectives

- Students will use their imagination to develop stories.
- Students will practice story sequencing.
- Students will distinguish between real and imaginary.
- Students will use everyday materials to create puppets.
- Students will reenact their story using the puppets they've created.

Prep for Teachers

Children learn through play. Spending time playing helps children learn and develop cognitive, social, emotional, and literacy skills. It also helps children stay physically healthy and reduces stress. There are many different kinds of play; each type provides different kinds of benefits. Whether play is structured or unstructured, indoors or outdoors, done solo or in a group, play is a key component in children’s growth.

As children engage in creative play and tell stories about themselves—using dramatic play and role-playing—children explore and understand people, emotions, and events. Whether they are recounting the ordinary events of the day or telling stories about fantastical creatures and places, children relish the opportunity to exercise their imagination and express themselves. Sharing or acting out stories with others enhances such social and emotional skills as self-control, decision making, and flexibility. Constructing a story in sequence, especially if the story includes characters, setting, and plot, enables children to develop and practice language and literacy skills. Reenacting favorite tales can give children a chance to reflect, reimagine, and reshape their world as they explore their place within it.

Supplies

Materials:
- Paper for drawing
- Paper lunch bags
- Construction paper cut into shapes
- Yarn, glitter, and other decorating supplies
- Pens, pencils, crayons, and markers
- Tape or glue
- Lined paper

For further information, please visit PBS LearningMedia website.