A Story for Hospitalized Preschoolers

Deborah DiSchino, Marquette University

Abstract

This essay presents a brief story for hospitalized preschoolers. The story has a predominant theme of fantasy which offers the child a suggestion of escape from his present situation to a more pleasurable place. The story provides an opportunity for the child to fantasize at a time when he has little energy to do this for himself. The review of literature is presented in three parts. The first part is an overview of the preschool child in relation to his cognitive development and his use of fantasy. The second part is an overview of the hospitalized preschooler. The third part describes the therapeutic value of storytelling. The methodology includes guidelines for the storyteller.