Dramatic Play as a Promotor of a Well-being for Primary School Pupils

Since the beginning of the last century, the interest of pedagogical research on childhood play
has been growing consistently. The contribution of active pedagogy, from the Agazzi sisters
to Montessori, to more recent authors, has initiated and enhanced the educational potential
of play. Indeed, play represents a privileged resource for learning and relationships. Through
different play experiences, the child opens himself to meeting others, explores the
environment, comes into contact with objects, expresses himself and tells stories.
Furthermore, he becomes aware of his own body and personality, experiments well-being
and pleasure (Patruno, 2014). At the same time, the child acts out the first conflicts and
discovers different perspectives and points of view. The present work aims to investigate the
current role of play in primary school, as an opportunity for the child's personal and overall
development (Berger 1989; Farnè 2021). More specifically, we intend to consider dramatic
play as an experiential mode able to activate all child’s sensory channels. Dramatization
involves body and emotions. It promotes expressive skills and helps build relationships with
others, impacting positively on the child's overall well- being, reinforcing autonomy and self-
regulation. Dramatic play proves to be an effective educational strategy in these Liquid
Modernity (Bauman, 2007; 2012; 2023), where the child also experiences forms of
individualism, states of loneliness and isolation. The experience of dramatization can help
the child in the process of achieving his or her own well-being.