Cooperative play

Consistent non-social activity is a cause for concern at the preschool level.

Children develop the skills to play together in stages, starting with parallel play where children play near each other, but not together.

In associative play, children remain engaged in separate activities, but exchange toys and comment on the other's actions.

When they orient toward a common goal during play, such as acting out a make-believe theme, children demonstrate true cooperative play.