The Boy In The Dress

I’ve mentioned before how much Noah loves different textures when it comes to sensory play, and this week is no exception. At Preschool, he has been known to delve into the dressing up box and investigate the treasures it holds, once pulling out a sequin dress and insisting on wearing it for so long that I had to peel him out of it at pick up time. He liked the way it felt to rub his hands over the sequins and the way they sparkled in the sunlight outside. For him, this was full sensory stimulation.

This week he made a new discovery! Ruffles! Back into the dressing up box for another exploration he dove, and this time he came up for air with sassy little Latin style dress, with layer upon layer of red ruffles all down the skirt. Naturally, he got himself some help to put it on and spent his afternoon marvelling at the way the fabric moved around his legs as he ran, sashaying his way around the room like it was his own private cat walk.

Some might call this self expression, a little boy not shoehorned into a box by the stereotypes of his gender, and to some extent that his true, but for Noah this is truly sensory exploration. An indepth investigation into the world around him, whether that be through touch, taste or swishing. Who wants to play with dinosaurs when you can watch a prism of colours dance off your clothes as you move around in the sun? Who wants to pretend to race a cardboard car when you can run and make your own sound effects with ruffles?

He is becoming so much more aware of the world around him and it’s treasures now, and I am incredibly proud of the way his confidence has increased. He is more alert and aware of other people, remembering faces we haven’t seen for a long time, and being more interactive with them than ever before. Part of that awareness comes from the freedom to explore the world in HIS way.

I intend to embrace Noah’s love of texture, and if that means buying him a dress then that’s exactly what I’ll do. You never know, he could be the next top fashion designer, wouldn’t that be something.