Activity Plans of Group Games for Social and Emotional Development of Kindergarten Children in Korea

Although classroom group games have been used to effectively teach mathematics in Korean kindergarten, ethnographic research has revealed some unexpected negative effects of such games on young children due to children's over-competitiveness and the teacher's unskilled group management. This paper proposes some activity plans for group games to promote the social and emotional development of kindergarten children, based on a pilot study conducted during two academic years in Korean kindergartens. The activity plans are presented in three parts: (1) basic requirements for group games (establish amiable climate, prepare the physical environment, integrate games with other activities, consider group size); (2) guidelines for implementing group games (appropriateness of games, voluntary nature of games, encouragement of prosocial behavior, flexible rules for games, flexible game procedures, recognition of children's opinions and needs); and (3) appropriate procedures for group games (preparing sufficiently, presenting instructions and rules, deciding on instructions, deciding on the rules, grouping, judging results, evaluating, and cleaning up). (KB)