Ihya Ulum: Early Childhood Education Journal

Development of Pobara (Joyful Reading Tree) Media to Improve Letter Recognition Skills in Early Childhood: Integrating Islamic Pedagogical Values

2026-07-27T08:28:28+00:00

Letter recognition constitutes one of the most fundamental pillars of early literacy development in early childhood, as it underlies phonological awareness and later reading competence. In practice, however, letter-learning activities in many early childhood classrooms are still delivered through conventional, text-based, and repetitive methods that fail to sustain children's engagement and motivation. Within Islamic educational thought, literacy acquisition is also inseparable from the theological command to read (iqra') articulated in the first revelation of the Qur'an, positioning the pursuit of knowledge as an act of worship rather than a merely secular skill. Motivated by these considerations, this study aimed to develop POBARA (Joyful Reading Tree), a three-dimensional instructional medium designed to improve letter recognition skills among young children through developmentally appropriate, play-based, and multisensory activities. The study employed a Research and Development (R&D) approach adapted from the Borg and Gall model, encompassing five stages: research and information gathering, planning, preliminary product development, expert validation, and product revision. The resulting prototype, a tree-shaped medium equipped with detachable illustrated alphabet cards, was validated by two instructional media experts and two early childhood education experts using structured questionnaires analyzed through Aiken's V formula. Results showed that all validation indicators exceeded the minimum acceptable coefficient of 0.75, confirming that POBARA is structurally durable and pedagogically appropriate for classroom use.

The Utilization of The Snakes and Ladders Game to Develop Early Reading Skills in Children Aged 3-4 Years

2026-07-27T08:11:23+00:00

This study aims to describe the process and outcomes of using the snakes and ladders game to develop early reading skills in children aged 3-4 years. Early reading skills, including letter recognition and picture-word association, are foundational competencies that need to be introduced through enjoyable and age-appropriate learning media. This research employed a descriptive qualitative approach, conducted at Playgroup Laboratory School of Nusantara PGRI University Kediri, with data collected through observation, interviews, and documentation of learning activities from October 22 to November 6, 2025. The snakes and ladders game was adapted as a learning medium for letter recognition, implemented in sessions lasting 30-40 minutes at the end of each lesson. During the initial sessions, children demonstrated enthusiasm toward game-based activities such as rolling the dice and observing the pictures on the board, although their active involvement in naming letters remained uneven. This was attributed to the children's strong focus on the game mechanics itself and an insufficiently conducive classroom atmosphere. In subsequent sessions, notable improvements were observed in children's participation, their understanding of the game rules, their courage in pronouncing letters and picture names aloud, and their verbal interaction with the teacher. Teachers also reported measurable progress in children's letter recognition ability, their skill in matching pictures with flashcards, as well as improvements in concentration and self-confidence during learning activities. In conclusion, the snakes and ladders game proves to be an effective and promising learning medium, offering an enjoyable, concrete, and interactive approach to early reading development, while requiring careful classroom management and consistent teacher guidance to maximize its benefits.

The Effect of Magnetic Letter-Based Play Activities on Early Literacy Skills of Children Aged 5-6 Years

2026-07-02T13:13:03+00:00

Early literacy skills are a critical foundation for children’s readiness to enter formal education. However, data show that Indonesia ranks 67th out of 81 countries in PISA 2022, indicating that literacy competency requires strengthening from the earliest stages of education. Initial observations revealed that of the 39 children in Group B, 5 had not recognized any letters at all, while 15 only recognized some letters; from this population, a purposive sample of 20 children exhibiting sub-optimal early literacy was selected and divided into an experimental group (n=10) and control group (n=10). This study aims to investigate (1) the description of magnetic letter media use, (2) children’s early literacy ability before and after treatment, and (3) the effect of play activities using magnetic letter media on early literacy skills. A quasi-experimental approach with a Non-Equivalent Control Group Design was employed. Data were collected through observation, tests, and documentation, then analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. Result showed that the experimental group’s mean score increased from 28.4 (pre-test) to 38.3 (post-test), a gain of 9,9 points, while the control group only increased by 2.6 points. The Wilcoxon test yielded a significance value of 0.005 (p < 0.05), confirming that play activities using magnetic letter media significantly enhance early literacy skills in children aged 5-6 years at Makassar of Islam Al-Abrar Kindergarten.

The Effect of the Traditional Boy-Boyan Game on the Gross Motor Skills of Children Aged 5-6 Years

2026-07-08T06:28:27+00:00

Gross motor skills are a fundamental aspect of development that needs to be optimally stimulated in early childhood. This study aims to determine the effect of the traditional “boy-boyan” game on the gross motor skills of children aged 5–6 years. This study employed a quantitative approach using a Quasi-Experimental Design and a Nonequivalent Control Group Design. The sample consisted of 20 children selected through purposive sampling, divided into an experimental group of 10 children who received the modified traditional “boy-boyan” game intervention and a control group of 10 children who received the “engklek” game intervention, each for six sessions. The novelty of this study lies in the modification of the “boy-boyan” game using rubber balls and stackable donut rings to enhance safety and visual appeal for children while stimulating basic motor skills. Data were collected through tests, observations, and documentation, then analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test. The results showed that the average gross motor skill score of the experimental group increased from 10.30 on the pre-test to 21.80 on the post-test, with 80% of the children achieving the “Very Good” category. The results of the Wilcoxon test showed an Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) value of 0.004 < 0.05, leading to the conclusion that the traditional “Boy-Boyan” game has a significant effect on the gross motor skills of 5- to 6-year-old children and is proven to be more effective than the “Engklek” game.

Deep Learning-Based Daily Activity Storybook for Early Childhood Literacy Skills

2026-05-20T08:24:45+00:00

This study aims to examine the effectiveness of a deep learning–based daily activity storybook in enhancing early literacy skills among children aged 5–6 years. Employing a quantitative approach with a pre-experimental one-group pretest–posttest design, the research involved 22 children selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected using a validated and reliable literacy observation sheet (Aiken’s V = 0.84–0.95; a = 0.91; ICC = 0.84) measuring children’s ability to comprehend symbols, use vocabulary, and express ideas meaningfully. Statistical analysis using the Paired Sample t-test revealed a significant difference between pretest (M = 52.14, SD = 4.38) and posttest (M = 74.27, SD = 5.16) scores, t (21) = 13.42, p < 0.001, with a very large effect size (Cohen’s d = 2.86). The findings demonstrate that integrating deep learning principles into contextual storybooks substantially improves children’s functional and expressive literacy. The study’s novelty lies in combining literacy, communication, and experiential learning through a child-centered storytelling model. Practically, it offers teachers an innovative pedagogical tool aligned with the Merdeka Curriculum, fostering joyful and meaningful learning. This research contributes to strengthening the theoretical and practical foundation of deep learning–based literacy education in early childhood contexts.