• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.119-141
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• 2023

Objective: This study aimed to investigate Pre-service early childhood teachers' perceptions and roles regarding young children's free play time. Methods: The study utilized the photovoice method and involved 21 pre-service early childhood teachers who expressed interest in participating. Participants were enrolled in an infants teaching methodology class in B city. The study involved four virtual meetings conducted via untact teams, and the automatic recordings of these meetings were transcribed for analysis. Results: The results revealed that pre-service early childhood teachers recognized young children's free play time as a period to enjoy full freedom, develop as the main agent of their lives, and express their imagination. Furthermore, pre-service early childhood teachers perceived their roles during young children's free play time as a specialist infant observer, a connector between play and learning, and a versatile supporter. Conclusion/Implications: The findings suggest the need for a systematic curriculum to provide pre-service early childhood teachers with a balanced perspective and awareness of the meaning of free play and teacher roles. The study highlights the importance of expanding pre-practice courses for observation of play and field-oriented curriculum for incumbent teachers.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.29-47
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• 2021

Objective: The purpose of this study was to understand the teacher's role as play supporter in a carry out play generated curriculum and develop and implement an action plan in order to indoor free play. Methods: Participants were 14 kindergartners (9 boys, 5 girls) and one teacher. Processes of planning-implementation and observation- reflection were repeated in a cyclical procedure and the 3rd action plan was conducted based on strategies to support children's play. Results: Children experienced the following: Continuing and immersive play, play filled with experiments and challenges, play to make together, attitude to enjoy novelty and respect differences, and play of trial and error. And the researcher changed the following: Be sensitive to the child's words and actions, finding the 'real interest' of children in 'waiting', acquiring the perception that 'children are the masters of play', seeing the value of learning in children's expressive play, and gain confidence in play support. Conclusion/Implications: This study suggested the need for teacher to have patience and demonstrate reflective thinking in order to support children's play.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.79-95
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• 2023

Objective: This study examines the relationships among four-year-olds' counting skills, their use of number words, and their mothers' use of number words during mother-child free play. Specifically, we assess whether children's use of number words mediates the relationship between their counting skills and their mothers' use of number words during play. Methods: Forty-two 4-year-old children and their mothers were asked to play freely with a given set of toys at their home for 10 minutes. Children also completed a counting skill test. Frequencies of number word use were calculated for mothers and children from transcriptions of the free play. Results: Children's counting skills, the frequency of their number word use, and their mothers' frequency of number word use were positively correlated with each other. Additionally, the frequency of children's number-word use completely mediated the relationship between their counting skills and their mothers' frequency of number-word use. Conclusion/Implications: The results suggest that children's use of number language may play a crucial role in the provision of number-related language input by parents, based on their children's math skills. Practical implications of the findings are discussed.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.19-37
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• 2021

Objective: This study aimed to explore the effect of the national preschool curriculum on children's development in Korea, focusing on teachers' daily practice. By comparing the effect of the teachers' curriculum practice to that of quantitatively measured free play, it tried to add practical implications beyond the statistical significance. Methods: Participants were 512 three-year-old children who participated in the Panel Study of Korean Children and their teachers. National curriculum practice and free play time at the age of three was put in the hierarchical linear regression models to discover children's developmental outcomes at the age of four, in domains of language, cognitive development, and social development. Results: Results demonstrated the significant positive influence of national curriculum practice on every domain of developmental outcomes. However, no facilitative influence of free play time was observed. Conclusion/Implications: The importance of teachers' practice of the national curriculum was emphasized. It was implied that the quantity of free play time itself did not assure the sound development of children. Policy implications were discussed regarding teacher practice and education.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.27-36
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• 2011

This study dealt with free play activities in the curricula of childcare centers in Daejeon area. 29 teachers from 21 day care centers were interviewed individually to obtain an understanding of teachers perceptions and conflicting views about play activity in the context of different day care curricula. The data were analysed qualitatively, using categorization and key word classification, frequency analyses and chi-squared tests. The results were as follows: (1) play-oriented curricula included sufficient play time and planned play activities in terms of the children's development. Children's freedom in play, optimum intercession by teachers, and interrelating activities between activity areas were included. In mixed curricula, children's freedoms were limited in many cases, and interrelating play between activity areas was hardly found. Formal lesson-oriented curricula resulted unplanned play activities and teachers' passive intercession of play. (2) Most teachers believed that play activities were more important to a child's development than formal lessons.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.33-48
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• 2004

The purpose of this study was to examine if mothers and their children used different interaction strategies depending on the interacting contexts. Sixty-five mothers and their children were observed while they interacted with each other in two contexts, that is, a free play context and a joint problem solving context. The result of this study showed that first, the mothers' strategies and their children's strategies were closely related. When the mothers used positive strategies, their children also responded with positive strategies. In contrast, when the mothers used negative strategies, their children also tended to use negative strategies. Second, the contexts which the mothers and their children interacted affected the strategies that the mothers and their children used. The mothers and the children were more likely to use positive strategies in the context of free play than in the context of the joint problem solving. This result points out the importance of free play as the context of producing a positive atmosphere where the mothers and their children interacted positively and had a good time. Suggestions for further study and implications for parents were provided.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.253-272
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• 2008

This study compared mother-toddler physical interaction by play type (traditional play, free play, block play), and child's sex and age. Subjects were 10 boys and 10 girls ranging in age from 25- to 36-months and their mothers. An observer videotaped the children and their mothers at play in their homes. Results showed that (1) mothers' physical interaction was not distinguished by play type or by child's sex or age. (2) Mothers expressed more positive emotion in traditional than in block play. (3) Younger children's play interactions were more nonverbal. (4) Children expressed more positive emotions in traditional play. This study provides groundwork for mother-toddler traditional play programs with potential for improving positive expression of emotion and attachment.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.51-62
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• 2003

This study investigated differences in play types of preschool children with disabilities both in mainstreamed and segregated classrooms. The play behaviors of 50 preschool children with disabilities were observed and videotaped during free play time. Differences were found in children's dramatic and group play. Conclusions were that mainstreamed preschool program emphasizing a play-based curriculum could be an effective model for children with disabilities by providing for a variety of play types. Implications for mainstreaming education and for teacher education were discussed.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.17-35
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• 2007

This study examined whether sequential transition patterns of social play differed by children's social competence. The social competence of sixty 5-year-old children was rated by their teachers using the Social Competence Scale(NICHD Early Child Research Network, 1996). Children's social play was observed during free play and coded by criteria developed by Robinson et al(2003). Results showed differences in children's social play behaviors by social competence and differences in the transition patterns of children's social play level by social competence. Children with higher social competence showed a transition pattern moving toward cooperative-social interaction, whereas children with lower social competence showed a transition pattern moving backward to solitary or onlooker behavior.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.1-14
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• 2005

The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between forms of children's solitary play and temperament, problem behaviors. Seventy-six children of four-year-olds were observed during free play. Children's temperament was measured by mothers of participants. Children's problem behaviors were measured by teachers. Following from Coplan et al(1994), this study were analyzed three aggregate measures of solitary play consisting of reticent behavior, solitary-passive play, and solitary-active play. The results of this study shows that first, the highest frequency of solitary play's forms was reticent behavior, followed by solitary-passive play, then solitary-active play. There weren't any differences in children's solitary play according to their gender. Second, there were significant differences among forms of children's solitary play and temperament. And there were gender differences in the correlates of different forms of solitary play. Third there were significant differences among forms of children's solitary play and problem behaviors. Also, there were gender differences in the correlates of different forms of solitary play. This result points out the important of solitary play and distintion of solitary play'forms.