Add Kids Shopping Carts To Kitchen Play

Kitchen play sets and kitchen accessories are a great way to encourage unstructured play. Kitchen play is one of the most popular forms of pretend play. Build your kitchen play set with toy food, kids shopping carts, cookware and utensils. Pottery Barn Kids has a large assortment of toys beyond kitchen play sets to encourage pretend play including dollhouses, trains and stuffed animals. Allow your child the freedom of unstructured play with toys, games and rockers from Pottery Barn Kids.

What Is Pretend Play?

Children use their imagination to act out different scenarios all while developing their language, social and motor skills. In pretend play children take on various roles and learn to manage their emotions all in the safety of their imagination. Kitchen play sets are a great way to promote pretend play. Here are some of the benefits of kitchen play:

• Kitchen play promotes creativity and problem-solving by allowing them to experiment in the kitchen and come up with creative solutions using the toy food and utensils on hand. This can improve their critical thinking skills.
• It can help them learn their numbers. Add a toy cash register so they can practice counting money and simple arithmetic.
• Children can practice their communication skills by hosting a tea party using a toy tea set. They can practice their social skills as they react to one another in make-believe settings.
• Kitchen play promotes the practice of fine motor skills as children grasp and use utensils, turn knobs and open and close doors.

What Kitchen Accessories Are Available?

Pottery Barn Kids has everything you need to stock your child's kitchen play set.

• Let your child role-play grocery shopping with a metal shopping cart. Sized for small children, it has a chalkboard sign on the front for writing and a foldable seat to hold their favorite doll or stuffed animal. Get the metal grocery bundle complete with cash register, kids shopping cart and mini grocery basket set complete with toy food.
• Create a baking station for future bakers. Pottery Barn Kids has hand mixers, cupcake sets and utensils. Baking bundles come complete with everything a young pastry chef needs, including metal pans and a gingham apron.
• Pottery Barn Kids has all-in-one kitchen play sets as well as individual pieces that let you customize your child's kitchen play set. Add a wooden grill set for outdoor play as well.

Encourage Unstructured Play

Make-believe is a key part of childhood. Pottery Barn Kids has fun and functional toys for all sorts of pretend play.

• Dress-up toys and costumes are a fun way to spark their creativity. Find costumes fit for the whole family.
• Picture books can foster a lifelong love of reading.
• Set up an arts and crafts area with an easel and some watercolors. Sidewalk chalk allows your child to be artistic outside.

Whatever game or activity sparks your child's imagination, you can find it at Pottery Barn Kids today.