The Development and Effects of the Ecological Play Program Using Rope

The purpose of this study is to develop an ecological play program using ropes and verify its effectiveness. For the growth of children who play with nature, the contents of hand play, body expression, physical play, together play, and artistic expression were organized. The program's teaching and learning consisted of a circular, continuous, and open system in which the processes of exploration, experience, and expression were guided by the principles of spontaneity, play-centeredness, and integration. The roles of teachers in the program were selected to fulfill the roles of interactor and motivator, ‘here and now’ teacher and observer, process-oriented evaluator, and self-improvement. The evaluation of the program consisted of early childhood evaluation and program evaluation. The results of the feasibility study showed that the ecological play program using ropes had a positive effect on self-regulation, social competence, and physical self-efficacy.