Puppetry activities in early childhood programmes

Loy, Chee Luen

Abstract

Puppetry plays an edutainment role in playing and learning activities for nursery and kindergarten children. This qualitative study was aimed to investigate the benefits of puppetry activities for children who were enrolled in early childhood programs. In-depth interviews were conducted with four respondents, two of whom were child care providers from the nursery and two teachers were from kindergarten. Based on the thematic analysis, it was found that the inclusion of puppetry activities in an early childhood program can boost intellect and memory; enhance creative thinking and imagination; more manageable of self-control and emotions; ensure social and interaction; allow practice in focusing; language and communication; improve physical and mental health; connected spirituality and moral values. Most importantly, the daily living skills embedded in the puppetry activities can be translated into their lives. In sum, this study proved that puppetry activities help to enhance life skills, learning experience development, and widen knowledge among nursery and kindergarten children. The study implied that puppetry activities should be integrated into early childhood education can sustain children's overall development.

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