Pretend Play About Bad Guys Helps Children Cope

10/27/2021

Pretend Play About Bad Guys Helps Children Cope

Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else.
Margaret Mead

"If you trust that kids’ pretend play is valuable and informs their development in positive ways, then one of the things you’re going to trust is their play about bad guys, because that’s such a huge part of what they do…So yes, I observed that play about bad guys and good guys…around power and safety…around danger and also love and connection, was so important." So said Donna King in an Ed.Flicks video clip where she explains how this kind of pretend play helps children cope with their fears and process information about the world.
In her popular book, Pursuing Bad Guys (part of the Reimagining Our Work collection), she tells the story of working on a year-long "bad guy project" with children and the questions and concerns she had to face as a teacher during that process.

You can hear Donna talk about her powerful experiences during a free webinar on November 12, 2021:

You are invited to join a meeting of Susan Harris MacKay and Donna King in conversation with Ann Pelo to discuss their books, Story Workshop: New Possibilities for Young Writers and Pursuing Bad Guys: Joining Children’s Quest for Clarity.

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