The use of folk dance and folk games in the development of preschool children

Abstract

Preschool age is a crucial stage in the development of physical, intellectual and emotional skills, including motor skills, sense of rhythm, spatial orientation and social skills (Lázár, 1997). Folk dance and folk games are enjoyable, tradition-based activities that offer numerous opportunities for developing these skills, adapted to the children's level of development (Kun, 2012).
‘The psychological role of games has not changed today (...) and so we do not want to use games to bring back a dusty, outdated, old world, but to rescue from it what satisfies a general need, and that is why we still need it today.’ (Lázár, 1997, pp. 22–25.)
Keywords: folk games, folk dance, preschool age, skill development, tradition-based methods