Sweden Pretend Play as Homeschool Activity

My husband is still in Sweden because of his work. My little boys decided to play pretend while waiting for their Dad to be ready for our Skype call. First, they got some sweaters from their closet. Then, my youngest son wore a backpack while he and his older brother walked around our bedroom. They pretended that one of the beds in the bedroom is Sweden and the other bed, the Philippines.

 

"Mommy, we will visit Daddy in Sweden," my eldest son told me as he held his younger brother's hand.
 

My boys waving to me as they prepare to go to Sweden.

 

"Okay! I'll see you later!" I answered.

 

Showing their backpack for their trip.

 

"No, Mommy! We will sleep with Daddy in Sweden tonight," my eldest son replied.

 

So I said, "Okay, see you tomorrow!" 

 

My eldest son later changed his mind about the setting in the bedroom. After a few minutes, he declared that the entire room is Sweden because it's already cold inside our room due to the air conditioner. 

 

They played for a few more minutes before their pretend play gave me an idea. I got my laptop and searched for images of the world map. I wanted to show my kids where Sweden and the Philippines are in the map. It took me a while before I found a clear image that has labels per country. It only showed Europe and Asia.

 

 

We talked a little about geography and climates in the different parts of the world. We also talked about travelling by ship or airplanes and how these modes of transportation differ. Since they were playing with boats in the past days, my eldest son got one of his paper boats and used it to play with the image (map) in my laptop. He said that he will travel by boat to Sweden.

Yanthy travelling by boat to Sweden.

 

 

Later, he said that he wants to travel by plane so he'd arrive faster. So, he asked me to transform one of his paper boats into an airplane.

 

I guess that this pretend play is my eldest son's way of coping while his Dad is away. Earlier this evening, he said that he misses his Dad and he's been asking if we can call his Dad through Skype.

 

Now, they are still up and playing pretend while waiting for their Dad to call. My eldest son said that he and his younger brother are now in their Dad's hotel room in Sweden waiting for their Dad to arrive from the office. But my youngest said that he will swim first in the hotel's pool while waiting for his Dad. hehe

 

I really love pretend plays! They not only help my kids develop their imagination. They also make it easy for me to integrate learning opportunities into their play.