Yoga for Symbolic Play 109Play-language relationships
Westby (2000) suggests varied relationships between language
abilities and play skills in children. For most typically developing
children and those with intellectual disabilities, play and
language are usually at commensurate levels because of the close
relationship between language and cognition. The language skills
of typically developing children from verbally rich environments,
however, may be more advanced than their play. Westby notes that
in children with specific language impairment and speech sound
disorders, play skills are usually more advanced than their linguistic
form, but at similar levels to their language content and use. For
verbal children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), linguistic
form is usually more advanced than play skills and at similar levels
to their content and use. They may produce scripted language
that is syntactically complex but said without understanding their
meaning. The literature indicates that children with ASD engage
in more solitary, constructive play of a repetitive nature (Kasari
and Chang 2014) and less parallel, cooperative, or symbolic play
of a dynamic, creative nature.
Dimensions of play
In addition to the play levels, Westby (2000) describes four
dimensions of play, namely decontextualization, thematic
content, organization, and self-other relations. Each of these
aspects of symbolic play will be characterized and their relevance
to children’s yoga practice will be explained.
Decontextualization
The first dimension, decontextualization, refers to the types of
props that children use to support their pretend play activities.
These props, which can be identified along a continuum from