Enhancing the Social-Emotional Skills of Early Childhood Children Aged 5–6 Years through Sociodramatic Role-Playing Activities

Abstract

Social-emotional competence is a fundamental component of early childhood development, yet some children experience difficulties in cooperation, emotional regulation, emotional expression, and responding to peers. This study aimed to examine the use of sociodramatic role-playing activities to enhance the social-emotional skills of children aged 5–6 years at PAUD Permata Barko. The study employed a classroom action research design involving 17 children and was conducted through a pre-action assessment and two intervention cycles, each comprising planning, action, observation, and reflection. Data were collected using a social-emotional observation checklist, teacher interviews, activity documentation, and researcher–teacher reflective notes. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively by comparing observation scores across assessment stages, while qualitative data were analyzed to identify patterns in children's social-emotional behaviors. The findings showed progressive improvement in children's social-emotional skills, with the mean score increasing from 2.1 at the pre-action stage to 2.8 in Cycle I and 3.5 in Cycle II on a four-point scale. Improvements were observed in cooperation, emotional regulation, emotional expression, and empathy toward peers. The findings indicate that structured sociodramatic role playing can provide meaningful opportunities for children to practice social interaction, manage emotions, communicate feelings, and respond appropriately to peers. The study concludes that sociodramatic role playing, supported by teacher facilitation and reflective instructional improvement, can serve as a practical strategy for strengthening social-emotional development in early childhood education.