Final answer:
Preschoolers can indeed engage in cooperative play where they share, take turns, and work towards a common goal. This is an important part of their social development and indicates a developing sense of empathy and understanding of others as separate individuals with their own feelings and thoughts.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that preschoolers' new social skills do not allow them to work together and cooperate with others in cooperative play is false. By the preschool stage, which typically includes children ages 3-6, children have indeed begun to develop the ability to engage in cooperative play with others. This type of play involves sharing, taking turns, and working towards a common goal, and is a critical aspect of social development. Preschoolers learn through different types of play, including solitary play, onlooker play, parallel play, and certainly cooperative play.
Children at this age enjoy playing with other children and can cooperate with others, share when asked, and separate from parents with little anxiety. The development of a theory of mind (TOM)—an understanding that people have thoughts, feelings, and beliefs different from one's own—offers further evidence that preschoolers are indeed capable of engaging in cooperative play, as it forms the basis for empathy and shared understanding needed in cooperative activities. Achieving milestones such as increased autonomy, the ability to initiate tasks, and a positive sense of self, contribute to preschoolers’ readiness for cooperative play.