Symbolic play

Helping your child make sense of difficult experiences through pretend play

Do you ever have one of those days when everything just seems perfect?

Blue skies and sunshine, a long, lazy afternoon stretching out before you?

I was having one of those days. Just standing in the park, just being.

Then, Woof!

Graarr!

I was on my back, a big black dog pinning me down, its front paws on my shoulders, its nose touching mine.

I had just learnt to walk. Life had been going so well. But now I was terrified.

The dog's owner pulled him off.

My dad laughed.

In fact, he teased me about it for years. Not with any malice, but he enjoyed telling the story nevertheless.

That's why you're afraid of dogs.

Thanks, Dad. Maybe you could have tried the Symbolic Play Play Tool instead.