Fantasy play ‘can benefit creative thinking in children’

Creative thinking among children can be enhanced by engaging in fantasy play, according to a new study.

The Oxford Brookes University research interviewed 70 children aged four to eight years old to assess the extent to which their play involved fantasy. Some played in ways that mirrored real life, whereas others acted out improbable or wholly fantastical scenarios.

They were then given three tasks, the first involving having to think of as many red objects as they could, the second demonstrating as many ways as possible of moving across a room, and the third requiring them to draw a real and imagined person.

Children who reported higher levels of fantastical play also received higher creativity scores across all three tasks, although the findings were stronger on the first two tasks than on the drawing task.

Lead researcher Dr Louise Bunce said: "These results provide encouraging evidence for parents and teachers who could consider encouraging children to engage in fantasy play as one way to develop their creative thinking skills."

However, it was noted that the results do not prove whether those who enjoy fantasy play are subsequently more creative, or if children who are more creative are generally drawn towards fantasy play.

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