We observe children's behaviour in the presence of toys; the toys and their arrangement always remains the same
We will record the evolution of play of Lionel, an active, lively boy
and Patricia, a girl whose movements are delicate and nimble
The first stage of play, which lasts until ~13 months, mainly serves to develop basic motor skills
the child's activity is much the same regardless of which toy is picked
here we see Lionel manipulating a brush, tapping objects
and rubbing a spoon against the floor
at 14 months, activity will become more restricted for each object, based on its customary function
thus, Patricia makes an association in her play, of the plate and the spoon
but we see her still using this spoon to tap lightly, and to and part the bristles of the brush
these activities are very repetitive
Lionel at the same age, also makes the association between objects that correspond with eating
at 15 months, the child's gestures become more precise
more objects begin to be used in ways resembling their customary function
although still with a lot of awkwardness
the actions are often well outlined and intentioned, but often disintegrate into simpler gestures
Patricia, after exploring the brush with the spoon, rubs the spoon on the floor, brings it to her mouth, rubs it on the floor again
then her interest becomes fixed on the hairbrush, which she brings up to her face, upside down then right side up
there is also a brief use of the mirror which she picks up, looks at, and turns over
but she soon falls back into more a primitive activity of rubbing and tapping the book with the brush
during this period, activities with animate objects are infrequent and non-sensical
Lionel seizes the objects, examines them, sits them down, puts them together
Patricia shakes them
straightens them, throws them away, collects them
she grabs the doll by the foot
and tries to remove the shoe from the doll's foot with her teeth
at 16 months the correct use of objects according to their customary use becomes more frequent
here, the previous chains of primitive action become transformed into symbolic acts
we see Liones with the feather duster and broom
he hits the plate with the duster
then he plucks at the feathers
and throws them on the plate
Patricia is attracted to the broom
and feels the bristles
she rubs the floor with the broom, as though sweeping
then she start to put objects back in their place
as though to empty the space to make better use of the broom
which she orients upright
she takes greater interest in her mirror reflection
looking at it intently
she brings the mirror to her lips
pokes it with her finger
and leans over to look at it once more
at 17-18 months, toys representing animate objects are treated as passive play partners
Lionel hugs the baby and cradles it
he explores its eyes using the handle of the brush
we begin to observe the groupings of objects
the two dolls and the bear are seated by side
albeit with difficulty
activities of superimposition/layering begin to appear
alternative stacking and unstacking of objects
a clear distinction is made between animate toys and inanimate objects
at 18 months, the first pretend games clearly appear
Patricia now really looks as though she is eating with a spoon
then, drinking from her cup
at 19 months, make-believe game become progressively richer
and are linked with complex sequences of activity
animate toys play an increasingly active part of the games
Patricia brings the brush to her hair several times
Lionel, after having finely positioned the feather duster and the broom end to end,
goes on to play with his animate toys
he grabs the teddy bear
examines him
sits him down facing him
grabs the doll
sets her down on a pot
then holds the three toys against him
at 19 months, Lionel recognizes the images in the book well, and can flip through it
at 20 months, Lionel engage in even more complex, multicomponent games
he tries to clean the pot with the feather duster
and the broom
he is even more interested in the book, and can now name some of the images
at 23 months, Patricia can brush the doll's hair very well
her movements closely resemble that of an adult
with well adapted fine motor skills
Lionel is able to perform sequences of actions that reflect what he has observed in his day to day life
he brushes the doll's hair
then feeds her with a bottle, to which he attached just the right nozzle
he mischievously transfers the action to himself, bringing the bottle to his mouth
two-player games are now common
despite some conflicts arising over the possession of toys
indeed, after a while Lionel grabs a doll that Patricia was playing with, who reacts with shock
yet, unable to retrieve the toy, she reacts to frustration with positive social attention
at 2 years old, the doll becomes a more active partner in the game
Lionel washes her
then shows her the mirror
he puts a spoon in her hand, so that she can eat by herself
he makes her drink from a cup
we see that an absent object can now be represented by a substitute
Patricia prepares the teddy bear's meal with the sponge as food, under the watchful eye of Lionel
Lionel grabs the rag with which he will swaddle the bear
from now on the child's imagination will be given free rein, and all creations will become possible