The Development of Symbolic Coordination: Representation of Imagined Objects, Executive Function, and Theory of Mind Anthony Steven Dick, Willis F. Overton, and Stacie L. Kovacs Temple University Children’s developing competence with symbolic representations was assessed in 3 studies. Study 1 examined the hypothesis that the production of imaginary symbolic objects in pantomime requires the simultaneous coordination of the dual representa- tions of a dynamic action and a symbolic object. We explored this coordination of symbolic representations in 3- to 5-year-olds with a modified action pantomime task that employed both a “dynamic action + object” condition and a “hold + object” con- dition. Consistent with earlier research, production of imaginary symbolic objects rather than body-part-as-objects increased with age, although, even at age 5, children did not perform at adult levels. As hypothesized, children produced fewer body-part-as-object anchors when they were simply asked to hold an object, rather than perform a dynamic action with the object. Study 2 repeated the conditions of Study 1 and examined these conditions in relation to performance on the Dimen- sional Change Card Sort (DCCS) task. This study replicated the developmental find- ings of the earlier study and indicated a modest relation between pantomime and the DCCS, which disappeared with age partialled out. Study 3 examined the action pan- tomime task in relation to the DCCS, false belief, and appearance–reality with 3- to 5-year-olds. Though performance on the DCCS was related to theory of mind, pro- duction of imaginary symbolic objects in pantomime was not strongly related to the- ory of mind or the DCCS. Results are discussed in terms of children’s developing re- flective competence in coordinating symbolic representations. JOURNAL OF COGNITION AND DEVELOPMENT, 6(1), 133–161 Copyright © 2005, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Requests for reprints should be sent to Willis F. Overton, Temple University Department of Psy- chology, Room 656 Weiss Hall 1701 N. 13th St. Philadelphia, PA 19122–6085. E-mail: overton@tem- ple.edu