Children's Letter Writing for Mothers as Character Education Reinforcement: A Bronfenbrenner Perspective

Character education in early childhood continues to encounter challenges in integrating genuine family involvement and facilitating meaningful emotional experiences within the learning process. This study analyzes the implementation of family-based character education through letter-writing activities directed toward mothers in early childhood at Udyana Kumara 1 Kindergarten, Taman, and evaluates its effectiveness from a developmental ecology perspective. The study employed a qualitative case study design, involving 20 children from groups B, as well as teachers and parents, as research participants. Data collection methods included participant observation, in-depth interviews, and documentation, with analysis conducted using the Miles and Huberman interactive model and the developmental ecology theoretical framework. The study reveals a strong correlation between the school-based activity of writing letters to mothers spanning the microsystem, mesosystem, and exosystem and the concept of matru devo bhava (macrosystem) as well as the occasion of Mother’s Day (chronosystem). These findings support research indicating that letter-writing activities help internalize character values ​​such as affection, empathy, gratitude, and respect for parents through concrete, contextual emotional experiences. Furthermore, this activity strengthens the emotional bond between the child and the mother while bridging the gap between school and family. Consequently, it can be concluded that the practice of children writing letters to their mothers serves as a micro-practice model of family-based character education applicable to early childhood education.