Abstract
The study identified the seven kindergarten teachers’ experiences and practices employed in a play-friendly classroom for kindergarten pupils in the District of Nabas, Aklan. It employed phenomenological research and used semi-structured interview guide questions along with a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) to gather the needed data. It was found that the teachers employed various play-friendly classroom practices and valued their importance to the teaching-learning process. The specific activities employed by the teachers include: play dough, dress-up, role-play, drawing, jigsaws, puzzles, shape sorters, painting blocks, table blocks, and sorting things are manipulative toys. Teachers also provided play places such as Bahay Kubo, sand play, water play, a toy area, a playing area, and a reading area. Other practices were done through worksheets, workbooks, flashcards, and multimedia videos. Most often, the activities were taken from the Department of Education’s Kindergarten Development Curriculum, DepEd Portal, and training attended by the teachers, but various difficulties in implementing them still need to be considered. Kindergarten teachers suggested that these play-friendly classroom practices should have a play-based learning center, an updated play-based curriculum, and a project campaign where the school or Department of Education may help kindergarten schools get funding from the private and public sectors. Kindergarten teachers should also obtain extra training, developing or designing new plays or games in all competencies, and integrating with other learning domains, especially in kindergarteners’ least taught abilities. Teachers should develop a contextualized program of play-friendly practices suited to the personalities and needs of their pupils, and there should be more in depth training for Kindergarten teachers so that they know what to do and are confident in how to teach their pupils.
Keywords: Parents’ Involvement, Academic Performance, Family Participation Questionnaire, Spearman’s Rank Correlation
*This paper is presented at the 4th International Conference on Multidisciplinary Industry and Academic Research (ICMIAR) 2023
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