Development and usability evaluation of a creative movement model integrating traditional games for early childhood education

Traditional games and creative movement provide culturally grounded and developmentally appropriate learning opportunities in early childhood; however, classroom-ready implementation models remain scarce. This study aimed to design and appraised the usability of Active-Tradir, a creative-movement model integrating Malaysian traditional games for preschool education.An expert usability evaluation was conducted using a Modified Nominal Group Technique with ten preschool teachers. Six components: objectives, targets, content, structure, teaching aids, and evaluation, were rated on Likert scales and summarized as percent usability. A pre-specified 70% criterion indicated “usable.” Qualitative comments were analyzed to identify actionable refinements. The prototype mapped four games to creative-movement elements: Getah→body, Wau Bulan→space, Tempurungkelapa→time, Teng-teng→effort. All components surpassed the 70% threshold. Highest ratings were observed for objectives (96%), content (94%), and structure (92%); comparatively loweryet acceptablescores were noted for textbook/teaching materials (84%), teaching aids (82%), and evaluation (82%). Comments emphasized the need for worked examples, low-cost material variants, and concise rubrics aligned to objectives and movement elements. Usability evidence indicates that Active-Tradir is adoption-ready, with strongest support for conceptual clarity and lesson structure, and clear priorities for strengthening teaching supports and evaluation guidance. Near-term work should finalize exemplars and rubrics; subsequent classroom trials are warranted to examine feasibility and child outcomes.