Dragons, dinosaurs and dolls......learning through dramatic play

I love dramatic play!  The housekeeping/dramatic play center is my favorite out of all the ones in my classroom. In that center, children can be anything that they can imagine. I probably enjoy watching the children interact and investigate in this center because my imagination took me so many places when I was little.
I had the most social and active imaginative life when I was young that my mother said it often sounded like I had 10 or 20 kids in my room with me.  I would play out intricate and long-running scenarios with dolls, stuffed animals, paper dolls, really anything I could find.
Observing my students engage in play without instruction, electronics or interference is delightful.

These three are using capes, scarves and hats to be superheroes.

Loose Parts

I love giving my preschoolers loose parts and then watching what they create! I found these great items from Kaplanco and the kids can't get enough of them. I added the stones (aquarium rocks) and the tray for storage and then just observed and recorded conversations and creations. I'm thinking of watercolor painting some of the pieces, but can't decide if they need color or just to leave them alone. What do you think?