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For one, wearing costumes means they get to be different people. And being a different person means kids get to do different things. One minute they are children and the next minute they are transformed into graceful ballerinas just by simply wearing a tutu skirt. Kids dressed as ballerinas feel a different level of confidence and believe they can dance like ballerinas too. Sure enough, once the music starts, they dance gracefully and elegantly even though it's their first time. Due to this belief, their interest in ballet increases and they want to dress up as ballerinas everyday and practice dancing for real.
Boys are also fond of costumes. They love imitating their favourite superheroes and re-enacting their favourite movie scenes. Not only are they giving full weigh to their imagination but their speech improves as well. When they are wearing capes or holding their superhero weapons, they remember all the lines that these superheroes say during action scenes. Furthermore, they also think develop their own script on the fly and tell their own unique stories. They become the most amazing little storytellers.
Dressing up improves your child's memory. Role-playing games requires kids to remember things that they have seen or heard. When dressing up as a doctor, a child recalls their own experience in going to the doctor and re-enacts them. Wearing a doctor's gown intensifies their memory and helps them remember what doctors do. So the child starts checking for your heartbeat using the toy stethoscope, or giving shots using a toy injection. When wearing a crown, they remember their favourite fairy tale and start acting out the scenes they've seen in the movies or read in the books. When dressed as a pirate, they think of the pirates' lines and actions such as yelling "Yar!"
Role-playing and wearing costumes improves their problem-solving and social skills. How? By assigning characters and deciding on costumes and accessories for each character. Who will play the king? Who will be the queen? When we let the kids decide about these things, we are helping them in improving their decision making. They also learn to talk to other kids and develop negotiating skills to get the character they want to play. They get to decide what they like and what they do not like. It helps them know their selves more and you get to know your child more in a fun way.
This type of activity also teaches kids a very important life skill: empathy. When they are dressed up as other people, it's like placing themselves in another person's shoes. They will have an idea of how each person lives and what they are going through everyday. Dressing up as a fireman will spark kids' interest in what a fireman does. Upon learning the job of a fireman, kids will have a new found appreciation for them. With the knowledge that they will acquire from that, they learn how to understand other people's feelings and how to respect them. It will help them deal with different types of people as they grow up.
And for the obvious reason, dressing up is fun. It is a great bonding activity for kids and their friends, or their family. Trying on different clothes matched with different accessories gives off a different kind of excitement. For days when you can't go out, this is the perfect activity for the whole family. Mixing and matching different colours of fabric, different textures, and different styles, gives kids a chance to use their creativity. Dressing up teaches them that fashion is an expressive form of art and that they can wear what they want and that they can be whatever they want to be. They learn the concept of give-and-take. That everyone involved in the game should be given the chance to pick their costumes and their characters. Dressing up is not just about fancy clothes or unique fashion. It's about expressing yourself and believing in yourself. It is more than just a fun way of spending time. You learn a lot of important life lessons as you try on different costumes inspired by your favourite characters.