Manipulative Play before Pencil (MPBP): An Interactive Instructional Material for Developing Fine Motor Skills

Abstract

There is a noticeable gap in kindergarten education due to the lack of instructional materials that specifically target fine motor skill development. As a result, many learners are introduced to pencil-and-paper tasks before they are physically ready, which leads to their poor handwriting skills. This study addressed this gap by developing an instructional material designed to develop fine motor skills through manipative play.. The researchers used a descriptive–developmental research design, adopting an Agile development approach that involved iterative planning, design, development, testing, and expert validation. Five evaluators, composed of teachers who specialize in early childhood education, assessed it using the Evaluation Rating Sheet for Print Resources, the LRMDS Educational Soundness Checklist, and an oral question on effective features. The findings determined the level of satisfaction of the material in terms of content, format, presentation, and organization, and accuracy and up-to-datedness, assessed its educational soundness, and identified its effective features. The results showed an overall Very Satisfactory level of satisfaction in terms of content, format, presentation, and organization, and accuracy and up-to-datedness, and a 97.4% educational soundness, interpreted as a Recommended Quality Evaluated material for education. Qualitative feedback from the evaluators and the students’ comments revealed themes highlighting the material’s colorful design, clear visuals, and varied manipulative activities, which substantiated the notion that the material is an effective supplementary resource in developing fine motor skills among kindergarten learners.