What if my child doesn't play pretend?

Symbolic play — using one object to stand for another, or acting out a scene — often develops later or differently in autistic children. That is a difference in how play unfolds, not a sign that a child has no imagination.

Speech pathologists watch this closely because pretend play and language grow together; both rely on holding an idea in mind that isn't in front of you. The usual approach is to start beside the child's real interests and add one small step at a time.

Here you'll find hand puppets, a dress-up unit, a play kitchen, a doll cottage, a pirate ship, a sand digger and a pop-up tent to build a scene inside. Realistic props tend to work better first, because a plastic frying pan asks less of a child than a block standing in for one. Early intervention therapists use the puppets to rehearse an unfamiliar situation.

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