A Christmas play-box for festive imaginative play

When she discovered the Christmas play-box I'd put together, my daughter literally squealed with delight. She promised she would wait till tomorrow morning - she has even set her alarm-clock so she has time before school - but as you can see, she couldn't resist trying out a few of the goodies before bedtime.

 

Both my children love imaginative play, and while we have the props and costumes, toys and equipment for most scenarios (or approximations - enough to fire the imagination anyway), I thought they might enjoy their play a little more festive during the next few weeks.

Both my husband and I have acquired various props and Christmassy-stuff through our comedy and storytelling work; things that would otherwise simply languish in storage between shows, so it was easy-peasy to pull this little lot together. Of course you can make up a Christmas play-box with whatever you have to hand that's safe and suitable for the age of your children. In our box we have:

• ready-wrapped prop presents
• a selection of knitted stockings
• two sets of reindeer antlers
• a Santa hat, wig and glasses
• a few plastic baubles
• salt dough decorations (made by the children last Christmas)
• tinsel
• a few (very cheap) crackers
• extra cracker jokes
• a small artificial Christmas tree (slightly too big for the box)

My children love to rehearse and put on shows of favourite stories (especially when friends are round to play) - so I'm sure we'll have a dramatic reading or two, from our Christmas and winter books below, using the box's bounty of all things festive .

Or they may well just play Christmas. I'm not going to be able to resist being a fly-on-the-wall if they do; finding out what they really think goes on during this time of year might be quite amusing. I just hope it won't include any stressful shouting or tipsy tantrums.

Time for a show

This week our Friday night film was the much loved Peter Pan. As they got ready for bed, my children asked whether they might put on a Peter Pan show the next day. Of course I said they could - but I wondered whether they would remember their plan. They often come up with something altogether different to play after a night's sleep.

But during breakfast and then as they each had a bath there was continual chatter about the Peter Pan show; from the characters and costumes to the location of scenes and ideas for props. This show was definitely going to happen. I went along with their plans - helping where I was allowed, but trying to keep distant enough so that it was their creativity driving the project along.

Firstly, costumes were chosen from their dress-up drawer; Buddy picked out a green tunic and belt for Peter, and Daisy put on a blue satin princess dress and her slippers to be Wendy. Buddy also wanted a green hat with a feather - so I helped him make one out of paper. I was also allowed to help Daisy with her hair-style; Wendy needed a kind of half-ponytail, apparently.

Costumes on, and characters collected - puppets for Captain Hook and Tinkerbell, and soft toys for the Lost Boys, Wendy's parents, Michael, John and Tiger-Lily - it was time to make posters advertising the show.

When these were completed and displayed, we rolled back the living room rug - for here was to be Neverland. They set up the mermaids' lagoon, Skull Rock (under the dining table), Captain Hook's pirate ship (the sofa) and the encampment for Tiger-Lily's family (a small table). All the characters were put into their starting positions around the house - this was clearly going to be a 'promenade' piece - and then it was time to begin...

The story started - as it does in the film -  inside the nursery of the Darling family home in London (actually upstairs in the children's bedroom) where Wendy and Peter Pan meet, and the children learn to fly.

An exciting flight (down the stairs) towards 'the second star on the right and straight on till morning' took them to Neverland where they met Hook, the Lost Boys, the mermaids and Tiger-Lily. They quoted the film's script for most of the scenes - this was very much a Disney Peter Pan. Peter even had an American accent.

Buddy and Daisy were able to remember exactly what happened in the story - a sign we've seen this film a quite a few times - and they recreated all the exciting adventure using their puppets and soft toys when required. They were absolutely immersed in the action. 

Their show was definitely more about climbing into the story than performing it for an audience - but it was all the more funny, convincing and exciting for that. I feel very lucky to have been allowed to see this magical production of Peter Pan before it transfers to the West End on the 12th of Never. It was outstanding.