Cool Dressing Up Games for Girls

The National Association for Gifted Children indicates that girls are often guided to value appearance over intelligence, and as of 2010, the Internet abounds with dress up games that give girls no other objective but to put fashions together. These games may fail to stimulate girls cognitively. However, offline dress up games, if designed with the mental development needs of girls in mind, may teach girls how to think independently and improve social interaction.

You Are a Lady

You Are a Lady is a dressing up game for girls designed to emphasize cultural diversity and to educate players about different types of fashion worn around the world. A facilitator provides players with all manners of dresses, shirts, skirts, hats, gloves, robes and scarves. The facilitator puts all these items in a large pile. The facilitator then says, “You are a lady from [country or region]. A lady from [country or region] wears [clothing items].” On the facilitator’s signal, the children rummage through the pile and race to put on clothing appropriate for the given country or region. The first girl who puts on her item in authentic style wins. The facilitator may explain a bit about the fashion of a region if needed before play.

I’m Going Out

I’m Going Out is a game that teaches girls about appropriate dress in different social situations. It is a little like charades. One player selects items from a clothing pile. Once this player puts on the clothing items, the other players have to guess where she is going based on her attire. For example, if the primary player is wearing sweats and a baseball cap, the other players might guess that she is going to a sports game. The player who guesses where the primary player is going first wins and gets to dress up next.

Star

Star is a dressing up game that teaches players about different kinds of music. A facilitator provides clothing and accessories, such as wigs and a play microphone. The facilitator also makes up a set of index cards with different kinds of music on them, for example, classical, rock. The index cards should include a short explanation of the genre. One at a time, the players pick a card. They then dress up and perform a short, impromptu song according to their genre. For example, if a child chose “rock,” they might choose a wild-hair wig and sing something while strumming air guitar. This is a good game for building self-esteem, as it gives each player a chance to be center-stage. There are no winners or losers with this game, although the facilitator may reserve a prize for players in categories like “Best Effort,” “Funniest Act” or “Most Moving Performance.”