The framework
This page follows the Nuri Curriculum, the common national curriculum for ages three to five in both kindergartens and childcare centres, revised in 2019 to be child-centred and play-centred. It is a plain-language guide for parents, not an official document; schools and regions differ in the detail.
| Class | Age |
|---|---|
| Age 3 class | 3–4 |
| Age 4 class | 4–5 |
| Age 5 class | 5–6 |
| Elementary school begins | 6–7 |
The areas of learning, with games that fit
Physical activity and health
Enjoying movement, healthy habits and keeping safe.
Communication
Listening and speaking, interest in reading and writing, enjoying books and stories.
Social relationships
Knowing and respecting oneself, living together, interest in the community and the wider world.
Art experience
Finding beauty, expressing creatively, appreciating art.
Nature inquiry
Curiosity and inquiry, exploring in daily life — number, space, pattern, measuring — and living with nature.
A typical day, and what helps at home
Since the 2019 revision a Nuri classroom day centres on long blocks of free play indoors and outdoors, with circle time, a story, music and movement, lunch and rest around them. Teachers watch what the children are interested in and build the week from that, rather than following a fixed unit plan. At home, the same spirit applies: follow your child's questions, play together, read picture books, and let Hangul arrive through signs, names and labels rather than workbooks.
By the end of the preschool years
Broadly, the framework hopes a child leaving the last preschool class:
- Moves confidently, keeps healthy routines and knows basic safety
- Listens with interest, speaks their thoughts and feelings, and enjoys books; is curious about Hangul letters in daily life
- Knows and values themselves, gets along with family and friends and follows shared rules
- Expresses ideas through music, movement, art and pretend play
- Counts and compares in daily life, notices patterns and shapes, and explores nature with curiosity
These are expectations for a whole year group, not a test for one child. Children reach them over a wide range of ages, and a child who is younger in the class, or learning in a second language, should be given more time, not more pressure.
Good questions to ask a preschool
How much of the day do children choose what they do? How long are they outdoors? How do you handle a child who is upset or who hits? How will you tell me how my child is doing — and is it a conversation or a report card? May I see the room in use? In every country on this list, a setting that answers these well is a better sign than one that promises early reading.
What is different here
Hangul is so regular that most Korean children read it before school without formal teaching, which is one reason the curriculum can afford to stay play-based. As elsewhere in East Asia, private after-school classes are common; the national curriculum itself asks for play.
Using this site alongside school
Fifteen minutes of Golu's Day covers every area above in rotation: a story, two games, something to move or sing, something to make and a thinking game, chosen for your child's age. For reading and number, the reading ladder and maths ladder put the games in teaching order, so you can find the first stage that is not yet easy and start there. Everything speaks thirty-four languages, which matters if your child's school language and home language are not the same.
If you are moving between countries
The class names change more than the children do. Compare ages, not labels, and expect a settling-in term before judging anything. See all seven systems side by side on the curriculum by country page, and what is typical at each age on the milestones pages.
Now do it for real
When the screen goes off, do something with your hands. Try 🌞 Draw your shadow — an easy science experiment for ages 3-6, with every step read aloud in your language. You will need sunshine and a paper or a chalk, a toy; nothing that needs a trip to a shop.
There are 56 more on the things to do at home page, and free printable worksheets if you would rather have something on paper. Ten minutes on a screen and twenty minutes off it is a good shape for a day at this age.
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