Educators can create and introduce children to visual reminders for activities that present the greatest challenges in terms of self-regulation( like transitions). We also suggest embedding visual reminders throughout the day and regularly referring to them. This paves the way for children to plan and monitor what they’ re doing at each transition point on their own. For example, a teacher can create and point back to a visual showing the following steps for getting ready for outdoor recess: 1) Put on a coat, hat, and boots; 2) Line up at the door; 3) Follow the line leader.
Visual mediators are more effective if they are brought out for a specific activity rather than posted on the walls where they become a part of the classroom’ s decoration. Sometimes, only one or two children might need this type of support, so the visual reminder can be small, individualized, and used only when needed.
Make Time for Make-Believe Play and Dramatization
Make-believe play( in pre-K) and dramatization( in kindergarten) provide rich opportunities for children to practice self-regulation. This is because in mature make-believe play, children’ s roles have rules of behavior: The“ doctor” acts in a way that is different from the“ patient”; a“ nurse” takes a baby’ s temperature, while a“ parent” pushes the baby’ s stroller. By acting out the roles they’ ve taken on, children inhibit behaviors that are not part of their specific roles; otherwise, the play scenario may end. When children in kindergarten dramatize stories, they practice remembering a series of story events, staying in character by talking and acting as the character does, and exercising agency in inhibiting actions that do not fit the storyline.
Educators can scaffold make-believe play and dramatization by helping children plan what a scenario will look like, encouraging children to remember and maintain their roles. For example, play props ranging from dress-up clothes to stick puppets can act as reminders of who children are pretending to be, helping them resist distractions. Using books, videos, and field trips that familiarize children with what people say and do in different roles and settings, like the grocery store or fire station, supports the development of mature make-believe play— the kind that builds self-regulation. Shared background knowledge not only builds equity, enabling all children to enter into make-believe play, it also enables children to come to an agreement on how to play a scenario, what happens next, whose turn it is to talk, and how to use a pretend prop, which are all elements of mature make-believe play.
24 Educating Young Children
Spring 2026