본 연구는 비구조적 자유놀이 시간에 유아들이 보여주는 놀이특성을 현상학적 관점에서 바라보고 해석함으로써 그 교육적 함의를 도출해 내고자 하였다. 본 연구에서 사용된 ‘비구조적 자유놀이’란, 유아교실에서 흥미영역, 놀이방법, 놀이감, 그리고 놀이를 기획하고 이끄는 교사의 역할 등이 엄격한 규칙이나 형식을 가지지 않는 매우 자유롭고 열려진 놀이 환경을 말한다. 본 연구는 비구조적인 자유놀이 시간을 운영하고 있는 A유치원 만 5세반에서 총 30회기 동안 비참여관찰과, 교사면담, 연구자일지를 통해 이루어 졌고, 수집된 자료는 질적 연구의 주제 분석에 따라 주의 깊게 읽고 범주화하 되는 과정을 거쳤다. 연구결과, 비구조적 자유놀이 환경을 통해 유아들은 스스로의 욕구와 흥미에 따라 놀이시간 및 놀이공간을 자유롭게 운영하는 놀이주체자의 모습을 보여주었고, 또한 놀이규칙을 스스로 만들고 다시 깨는 순환적 반복을 통해 놀이에 몰입하고 변형하고, 재창조하고자 하는 독창적 놀이능력을 보여주었다. 특히. 비구조적 자유놀이시간에 사용되는 자연물이나 유아가 스스로 만든 놀이감들은 유아에게 진짜 재미있는 놀이를 이끄는 매우 주요한 매개물로서 역할하고 있음을 드러내 주었다. 본 연구는 유아교육에서 가장 중요한 의미를 가지는 자유놀이는 놀이시간과 놀이공간, 놀이감등에 내재하는 구조와 형식에 의해 독특한 질적 특성을 가질 수 있으며, 이는 새로운 관점과 해석을 통해 더욱 의미화 될 수 있음을 제안하였다.

Free play is the one of the most significant activities in the early childhood classroom. How a teacher designs and provides the classroom play environment determines the meaning and quality of young children's play. Under the influence of cognitive psychology and constructivism, free play in early childhood education has become more structured, putting more emphasis on learning centers with strict rules and less on open-ended play materials. However, there are increasing voices expressing concern about the resultant confinement of young children's spirit of free play to overly didactic learning, ignoring the essence of enjoyment and feeling of living in play. This study attempts a phenomenological exploration on the meaning of children’s play during unstructured free play time. Unstructured free play in this study is defined as play time which has no strict, rule-bound learning centers but does have flexible limits on time to be allotted, and open-ended play materials. Teachers in unstructured play environments deliberately refrain from providing pre-planned play activities. They neither intervene in children’s play by introducing or applying strict rules nor do they introduce highly structured play materials. The data for this study include video tapes, field notes, and informal interviews with the teacher of a classroom which operates an unstructured play environment for 5 year old children. Collected data were analyzed in a qualitative way. According to the findings, children in unstructured free play time were very flexible in terms of style, method and place of play. The children’s behavior reflected the attributes of the materials by being non-structured and free in their play activities: they freely expressed their needs and appeared to feel physically and mentally free to do so. In sum, they appeared to internalize the non-structured and flexible qualities of the play environment and the open-ended play materials. These finding suggest that unstructured free play could substitute for the current structured play environment and play materials, which are constructed to inherently define and prescribe, not only their use but the goals and themes of their use. Non-structured free play time could allow children to truly enjoy a sense of freedom during play. An unstructured free time program also allows children to create a better relationship with their peers, thus fostering the individual child’s consciousness of oneness with the group.

Free play is the one of the most significant activities in the early childhood classroom. How a teacher designs and provides the classroom play environment determines the meaning and quality of young children's play. Under the influence of cognitive psychology and constructivism, free play in early childhood education has become more structured, putting more emphasis on learning centers with strict rules and less on open-ended play materials. However, there are increasing voices expressing concern about the resultant confinement of young children's spirit of free play to overly didactic learning, ignoring the essence of enjoyment and feeling of living in play. This study attempts a phenomenological exploration on the meaning of children’s play during unstructured free play time. Unstructured free play in this study is defined as play time which has no strict, rule-bound learning centers but does have flexible limits on time to be allotted, and open-ended play materials. Teachers in unstructured play environments deliberately refrain from providing pre-planned play activities. They neither intervene in children’s play by introducing or applying strict rules nor do they introduce highly structured play materials. The data for this study include video tapes, field notes, and informal interviews with the teacher of a classroom which operates an unstructured play environment for 5 year old children. Collected data were analyzed in a qualitative way. According to the findings, children in unstructured free play time were very flexible in terms of style, method and place of play. The children’s behavior reflected the attributes of the materials by being non-structured and free in their play activities: they freely expressed their needs and appeared to feel physically and mentally free to do so. In sum, they appeared to internalize the non-structured and flexible qualities of the play environment and the open-ended play materials. These finding suggest that unstructured free play could substitute for the current structured play environment and play materials, which are constructed to inherently define and prescribe, not only their use but the goals and themes of their use. Non-structured free play time could allow children to truly enjoy a sense of freedom during play. An unstructured free time program also allows children to create a better relationship with their peers, thus fostering the individual child’s consciousness of oneness with the group.

unstructured free play,play,young children,play material