Imaginative play is crucial to the cognitive, emotional, social and physical growth and development of young children.
In other words, children make sense of the world around them through imaginative play. When they pretend to be a doctor, they process their anxiety about going to the doctor. When they play ‘teacher-teacher’, they give themselves permission to stand up and be heard. When they make believe that they are an adult, they experiment with authority. When they imagine they are an astronaut, they allow themselves to dream big. And when they enter the magical world of Barbie Dreamtopia and fantasize about being a fairy, or a mermaid, or a princess, they escape the boundaries of everyday life and set their imagination free.
Imaginary worlds are safe worlds, where children are free to experiment with behaviour, to make mistakes – and not suffer any real-world repercussions.
The Barbie Dreamtopia range was specifically developed for children between the ages of three and six – the period during which children begin to explore and test boundaries. Featuring a world filled with mermaids, fairies, and princesses, unicorns, rainbows and cotton-candy clouds, it is custom-designed to appeal to little girls from every walk of life, to give their imaginations free reign. This is a world in which anything is possible: breathing underwater, flying through the air, talking to animals and snacking on clouds.
The Dreamtopia range was originally born out of an animated series that saw Barbie and her younger sister Chelsea embark on a series of adventures in the fantastical world of Dreamtopia. But recognising the impressionable age of the target audience, the creators ensured that each episode offered more than just the twists and turns of a traditional fairy tale, teaching crucial life lessons along the way, such as the power of teamwork, problem-solving, self-expression, patience, perseverance, and the importance of believing in oneself.
The popularity of the Dreamtopia range has seen it expands well beyond the boundaries of the animated series, giving little girls the opportunity to create their own imaginary worlds, featuring their very own fairies, mermaids and princesses, complete with wings, tails and hair to rival Rapunzel, not to mention pet unicorns, mermaids and even a talking cookie and milk set!
Little girls are little for such a short time in their lives. Let them play. Let them dream. Set their imaginations free with Barbie Dreamtopia #YouCanBeAnything.
