Let's Pretend

Inspire your child's imagination with these make-believe play scenarios that let him trot the globe without ever leaving the house. A few basic props — a row of chairs, a suitcase, a homemade passport — and the suggestions below are all you need to convert your family room into the greatest tourist attraction of all.

TRAIN OF THOUGHT
Choo choo! All aboard! Take your seat in that row of chairs and have your construction paper ticket ready because here comes the conductor. He's the short one with the striped cap (a baseball cap will do in a pinch), blowing on a whistle and yelling out the stops: Grandma's house! New York City! Your child might want to trade places with you for snack time, which you can serve in the dining car (he can walk up and down the aisle of chairs to get there). Come naptime, his seat won't magically convert to a bed, but a crib makes a pretty nice sleeping car.

JUST PLANE FUN
It looks like that same row of chairs, but the roar of the engine leaves no doubt: you've reached cruising altitude. Suggest that your child play flight attendant and walk down the aisle with a tray of sippy cups and snacks, perhaps a board book or two — until he decides he'd rather be the pilot or a passenger. And now, in preparation for landing, he can ask everyone on board to please fasten their seat belts.

SHIP AHOY
Christen your vessel Lady Laundry Basket and set her on a carpet or blanket, and she'll be seaworthy for even the saltiest little one. Remember the laws of the deep: a white paper triangle taped to a cardboard tube means sailboat, a pair of wooden spoons or paper-and-tube paddles means rowboat, a stick with a string means fishing dory, and an eye patch always means pirate ship. Should any rescue missions bob up, you can inflate a pool ring and have your child toss it into the shark-infested waters.