Best Pretend Play Toys for Kids of all Ages

November 14, 2025

Key Takeaways:

Pretend play grows with kids, from simple role-play in toddlers to complex storytelling in older children.
Pretend play introduces life skills like problem-solving, teamwork, planning, and creative thinking.
Imaginative play offers hours of engaging fun without relying on screens.

Pretend play, also known as imaginative play, is when children use their imagination to act out scenarios, role-play different characters, and create make-believe worlds.

The best pretend play toys turn everyday moments into adventures. Kids might pretend to be a doctor treating stuffed animals, or create elaborate storylines with action figures.

Pretend play toys spark creativity, build language skills, and teach empathy and social skills. They give kids a safe way to understand real-life experiences, while encouraging problem-solving, sharpening thinking, and boosting confidence as they explore different roles.

Best Pretend Play Toys for Toddlers

As toddlers begin to explore more, they benefit from simple and sturdy open-ended toys that encourage basic role-playing.

Stuffed Animals

Soft dolls and stuffed animals are classic pretend play starters. Toddlers love to hug, feed, and “care for” their plush friends, as they act out everyday routines like bedtime, snack time, or trips to the doctor.

These simple games build empathy, spark language skills, and offer comfort as little ones explore everyday routines and new emotions.

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Building blocks

Building blocks do far more than let kids build towers. Toddlers might turn a block into a phone, a drum, or even a tiny house, using their imagination.

Research also shows that both pretend play and block play positively affect language, communication, problem-solving, social, and emotional regulation skills [*].

Push Toys with Storage

Push toys with built-in storage, like toddler wagons, shopping carts, or doll strollers, let little ones copy everyday activities such as grocery shopping, delivering “mail,” or taking a favorite stuffed animal for a walk.

Pushing the toy helps toddlers build balance and coordination, while the open-ended play boosts problem-solving, language, and confidence as they act out everyday routines in their own style.

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Best Pretend Play Toys for Preschoolers

For preschoolers, choose imaginative play toys that inspire storytelling with multiple characters. Open-ended toys let kids invent detailed plots, assign roles, and dive into both everyday life and magical adventures, while improving language, social skills, and problem-solving along the way.

Research also shows that pretend play helps preschoolers boost their creativity and gradually move from playing alone to playing cooperatively [*].

Role-play sets and dress-up costumes

These costumes help children explore both realistic scenarios (like being a teacher or doctor they've met) and fantasy roles (like being a superhero or princess from their favorite shows).

The beauty of role-play toys at this age is how they enable storytelling. A child might start as a doctor treating patients, then transform into a chef making dinner, and finish as a superhero saving the day—all in one play session.

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Action figures and character dolls

Action figures and character dolls serve as the "cast" for children's increasingly sophisticated stories. At this age, kids assign distinct personalities and voices to their figures. They might have their action figures go on adventures, solve problems together, or recreate scenes from favorite movies or books.

The versatility of action figures and dolls means they can be anything the child needs them to be—family members, friends, heroes, or even representations of the child themselves in different situations.

Puppets or puppet theaters

Puppet play perfectly matches the preschooler's love of fantasy and storytelling. Children can create elaborate tales where puppet characters go on magical adventures, solve mysteries, or interact with dragons and fairies.

The theater aspect adds an element of performance that helps build confidence and communication skills. The puppet becomes a vehicle for trying out different voices and personalities.

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Best Pretend Play Toys for Early School-Age Kids

School-age children can handle pretend play sets that involve more complex rules, detailed scenarios, and collaborative play with peers.

Collaborative World-Building Sets

These world-building sets allow multiple children to contribute to creating elaborate worlds. One child might focus on building the police station while another constructs the fire department, and a third designs the residential area.

The physical act of building together also supports their storytelling abilities, as the environment they create becomes the stage for ongoing narratives with clear story structures.

Role-Playing Board Games

Games specifically designed for children, like beginner-friendly tabletop RPGs or story-building board games, provide the framework that 6+ year-olds need to organize their increasingly complex play scenarios.

Each player typically has a specific role with defined abilities and limitations. The game mechanics provide enough structure to keep the story moving forward while leaving plenty of room for creative problem-solving and character development.

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Pretend Tech or Science Gear

Pretend tech and science gear tap into early elementary children's growing understanding of how the world works. Sets might include child-friendly microscopes, chemistry equipment, and other science and tech kits that allow children to role-play as scientists, researchers, or technology experts.

What's particularly valuable about science and tech play at this age is how it combines imaginative role-play with real learning. Children might assign roles like "head scientist," "lab assistant," or "data recorder" while conducting actual experiments.

Best Pretend Play Toys for Older Children

When choosing pretend play toys for older children, aim for options that match their more advanced thinking and creativity. The best toys combine real-world skill building, like planning, design, or problem-solving, with the freedom to create complex stories and immersive worlds of their own.

Advanced Building/Engineering kits

Advanced building and engineering kits are perfect for older children who have outgrown simple block sets and crave more difficult construction challenges. Children can spend weeks planning and building elaborate projects.

These kits satisfy their need for challenging, long-term projects while supporting pretend play. They allow children to role-play as engineers, architects, inventors, or technology developers while developing genuine STEM skills.

Fashion Design Kits

Fashion design kits offer older children, particularly those interested in creative expression and style, the opportunity to engage in pretend play while developing real artistic and technical skills.

Children can role-play as fashion designers, stylists, boutique owners, or fashion magazine editors while creating actual wearable garments.

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Detailed Miniature Worlds

What makes these miniature worlds particularly captivating for older children is their incredible attention to detail and the level of control they provide. Children can arrange and rearrange furniture, create different room themes, add seasonal decorations, and even modify the architecture itself.

Examples include elaborate dollhouse mansions with working electricity and plumbing systems, detailed model train layouts with entire miniature communities, fantasy castle sets with multiple rooms and accessories, or modern apartment complexes with realistic furnishings and decor.

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Summary

Pretend play changes as kids grow, from toddlers caring for stuffed animals to older kids designing entire miniature worlds. The best toys leave plenty of room for imagination while helping to build real-life skills.

Pick toys that fit your child’s age and interests, and you’ll keep their stories and their learning going strong at every stage.

For more resources for social-emotional development in children feel free to explore our collection of digital SEL worksheets.

References:

Lyu, Jiabin. (2023). The Effective of Block Play and Pretend Play in Early Childhood Development. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media. 16. 155-160. 10.54254/2753-7048/16/20231138.
Iqbal, Zafar & Shakil, Tayyaba & Zahoor, Irsa. (2023). Investigating the Role of Pretend Play in Developing Creativity among Preschoolers. International Journal of Innovation in Teaching and Learning (IJITL). 9. 35-61. 10.35993/ijitl.v9i2.2944.