The Effect of Creative Drama Activities on Preschool Children’s Early Literacy and Social Skills

This study aimed to determine the effects of creative drama activities on preschool children’s early literacy and social skills. The study used a pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design with a control group. Data were collected through the “Personal Information Form,” the “Early Literacy Skills Assessment Tool” developed by Karaman-Benli (2013), and the “Social Skills Assessment Scale” developed by Avcıoğlu (2007). The study group consisted of 35 children, including 17 in the experimental group and 18 in the control group, attending a public kindergarten affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in the Gemerek district of Sivas. Within the scope of the study, the researchers' creative drama sessions were implemented with the children in the experimental group for approximately 30 minutes per session, three days a week, over six weeks, totaling 18 sessions. The children in the control group, on the other hand, continued with the regular curriculum implemented by their classroom teachers during this period. The data were analyzed using paired-samples t-tests. Cohen’s d effect size was calculated to determine the magnitude and strength of the effects. The findings revealed whether students' scores on the distance education scale differed by variables such as gender, age, access type, and grade level. The results indicated a statistically significant difference in the posttest mean scores for early literacy and social skills between the children in the experimental group who participated in creative drama activities and those in the control group. An examination of Cohen’s d effect size value for the difference between the experimental and control groups showed a large effect in favor of the experimental group. Based on the study's findings, several recommendations were proposed.