Organizing Experiential Activities for Primary School Students

I went to this website and was able to get a small grant to carry out my project [30].

The UK's experiential program provides students with a variety of real-life situations and requires them to use their knowledge and skills to solve problems in order to achieve the best results; at the same time, it provides them with opportunities to be creative, innovative, dare to think, dare to do... [31] At the Widehorizon experiential education center in London, the UK's leading experiential activities are organized. Participating in experiential activities here, students will have the opportunity to experience. The center is fully equipped with facilities such as: classrooms, gardens/parks; design, construction, careers, architecture,... to organize various types of experiences for students. The content of the experiential program provides diverse situations that students often encounter in life and requires them to apply their experiences to solve problems.

Experiential activities in Germany place great importance on skills such as: creativity; independent learning ability; critical thinking and learning from one's own experiences [31].

Japanese education is designed based on valuing students' experiences, using them as raw materials, clues, and starting points to build program content. In the educational program, experiential learning with specific activities is implemented in all subjects: social studies, science, life, etc. In social studies alone and related activities, there are tens of thousands of "educational practices" that focus on experiential activities. For example, the activities "Village life"; "A person's life"; "Fukuoka station"; "The dog in Kassori shell mound", etc. [12].

In general, the above studies have mentioned the basic aspects of organizing experiential activities, emphasizing the importance of experience in shaping children's personality; through experience, children will

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accumulate experience, develop skills and moral qualities for future life; experiential activities aim to orient the development of learners' capacity.

1.1.2. Domestic projects

In Vietnam, some research works on teaching theory also mention the issue of learning based on experience. Pham Minh Hac believes that through the activities of each individual, people are formed and developed. In the learning process, learners acquire knowledge, skills, techniques, and social values. Only by researching and learning can each individual equip himself with knowledge.

Do Ngoc Thong introduced the experience of organizing experiences in the UK and Korea. Experience activities can be organized in various forms such as: extracurricular activities, clubs, forums, field trips, etc. [30].

The study by author Dinh Thi Kim Thoa mentions and applies Kolb's theory to teaching in schools. According to the author, experiential activities are educational activities through the experience and creativity of each individual in applying the experiences and skills learned in school to solve problems in real life, thanks to which experiences are accumulated and gradually transformed into capacity... [29].

In the country, recently there have been many articles and scientific research papers on the situation of experiential learning.

In 2006, the experiential learning project was mentioned in the document “Learning while playing - Playing while learning”. It provided guidance on organizing experiential environmental education activities compiled by the Hanoi Environmental Education Project and the Center for People and Nature. This project program was implemented in 12 primary schools and 11 secondary schools in Hanoi. The project document briefly introduced concepts related to environmental education in general and experiential learning in particular, and introduced a number of practical game activities to educate primary and secondary school students [7].

In 2011, for the first time, the International Faculty - Hanoi National University cooperated with Keuka College, USA, students in the Bachelor of Science in Management program were exposed to the subject " Experiential Education ". The subject aims to help students get closer to life, to society and gain more practical experiences in life [25].

In 2014, the Ministry of Education and Training organized a workshop: " Organizing creative experiential activities for high school students and the general education model associated with local production and business " which attracted many articles from authors across the country. There were 19 articles from 21 authors sent to the workshop, among which there were a number of articles that mentioned at a hot level the issue of organizing experiential activities for students. The article by author Le Huy Hoang on "Some issues on creative experiential activities in the new general education program" mentioned the most general issues of experiential activities such as the content and characteristics of experiential activities [3].

Determining the position and role of experiential activities in teaching and learning, the Resolution of the 8th Central Conference, Session XI, on fundamental and comprehensive innovation in education and training mentioned the issue of organizing experiential activities for students as an active teaching method in the teaching and learning process. The nature of experiential activities is educational activities aimed at training and developing the qualities, knowledge, and life skills that people in modern society need for students [9].

In 2017, experiential activities were included in the general education program - Comprehensive Program. The program has identified the experiential content of primary school to be integrated into compulsory subjects and experiential activities such as: Vietnamese, Math, Ethics, Foreign Language 1 (grades 3,4,5); Nature and Society (grades 1,2,3); History and Geography (grades 4,5); Science (grades 4,5); Information Technology and Technology (grades 3,4,5); Physical Education; Arts; Experiential Activities. The program content is designed into topics; students can choose subjects and topics that suit their wishes and the school's organizational capacity" [1].

Thus, the issue of experience and organization of experiential activities has been studied by many scientists and authors in many different aspects. The authors have pointed out the importance of experiential activities and the organization of experiential activities, and proposed measures to manage these activities well. However, there are still very few studies on the organization of experiential activities for primary school students. Specifically, we see that it needs to continue to be studied and researched.

1.2. Some basic concepts of the topic

1.2.1. Experiential activities

* Experience:

According to the Vietnamese dictionary, the activity of experiencing is explained as follows: "Trai means to have gone through, to know, to have endured; and Nghiem means to go through reality and realize that something is true" [27, p.1020].

According to the Vietnamese Encyclopedia Dictionary , "experience in the most general sense is any state with emotional color that the subject feels, goes through, and remains a part (along with knowledge, consciousness...) in the psychological life of each person. In a narrower, more specialized sense of psychology, it is the internal signals, thanks to which the meaning of events happening to the individual is conscious, transformed into the individual's own ideas, contributing to the conscious selection of necessary motives, and adjusting the individual's behavior" [20].

Thus, experience is the process of individual activities when participating in practical activities. During that process, each individual will use their senses to observe, feel about phenomena and summarize their own experiences.

Experience is the process by which students, through their activities, participate in social relationships, perform certain operations and activities that impact the surrounding world. Thereby, they acquire symbols about the surrounding world, knowledge, behavior and skills necessary for learners to develop their individual capacity.

1.2.2. Experiential activities

Experiential activities are part of the educational process, organized outside of class hours of cultural subjects in class and have a complementary relationship, supporting teaching activities. Through practical activities, specific tasks and actions of students, experiential activities will exploit the experiences of each individual, creating opportunities for them to actively apply the knowledge they have learned into practice and come up with their own initiatives, thereby promoting the creativity of each individual student" [2].

According to the International Association of Experiential Education: “Experiential activities are a category that includes many methods in which teachers encourage learners to participate in real-life experiences, then reflect and summarize to enhance understanding, develop skills, shape life values and develop personal abilities, towards making positive contributions to the community and society”[2].

In addition, experiential activities are also considered "educational activities, in which each individual student directly participates in practical activities in the school environment as well as the family and social environment under the guidance and organization of educators, thereby developing emotions, ethics, personality qualities, abilities, etc., thereby accumulating personal experience as well as promoting their individual creative potential" [3].

Thus, we understand experiential activities as activities in which, when performed, people must mobilize life capital, experience, knowledge, skills, and creativity in solving practical problems, thereby developing personal capacity.

1.2.3. Organizing experiential activities for primary school students

Organizing experiential activities for primary school students is a pedagogical process that is organized with a purpose and plan aimed at forming and developing the learner's personality, especially cognitive capacity and action capacity that are formed and developed during the process of students participating in and experiencing knowledge and skills.

skills and attitudes in relation to other students with limited scope of activities in which they are allowed to participate.

According to the school education management approach, organizing experiential activities for students in primary schools are purposeful and planned measures of the primary school principal to the process of organizing experiential activities for students (including the goals of organizing activities, the forces participating in organizing experiential activities, mobilizing resources in organizing experiential activities for students, forms of organizing activities, activities of teachers and activities of students) to form knowledge and skills for students, thereby developing their comprehensive personalities.

1.3. Some basic issues about experiential activities in primary schools

1.3.1. Objectives of experiential activities for primary school students

The goal of experiential activities in primary schools is to form in students basic life skills, positive living habits in practical life, study habits at home as well as at school; know how to comply with rules and regulations; be able to self-orient, form cultural communication and behavior; have a sense of teamwork, a sense of participation in social activities, community service activities; get acquainted and form interest in some occupations close to students' lives in a real-life environment [33].

Organizing experiential activities in primary schools aims to attract and engage primary school students to participate. Through that process, students perceive, explore, develop new skills, form and develop new skills, and at the same time, it is also an opportunity for them to experience and test previously formed knowledge and skills.

1.3.2. Position and role of experiential activities in primary education programs

Nowadays, primary schools are organizing experiential activities. This activity is considered the key to making learning go hand in hand with practice.

practice, learning by doing, learning to solve practical problems in life right in the classroom, in school. This activity is considered a method to develop creativity, help children acquire knowledge by themselves, and educate morally and physically.

- aesthetics, emotional development, attitudes, building beliefs, social norms, behavioral principles, forming qualities and life skills for oneself. Through experiential activities, contributing to the implementation of primary education goals, developing capacity for primary school students.

Experiential learning activities are practical educational activities conducted in parallel with teaching activities in schools. Experiential activities are a part of the educational process organized outside of cultural subjects in class and have a complementary relationship, supporting teaching activities.

Through practical activities, specific tasks on diverse and rich topics, themes, and educational content, students will develop their specific roles, positivity, initiative, self-awareness, and creativity. They are involved in all stages of the activity process from design, preparation, implementation, and evaluation of results.

In addition, students can express their ideas and choose their own ideas. Therefore, they are really excited and very active when learning in the form of experiential activities.

1.3.3. Content and form of experiential activities for primary school students according to the new general education program

1.3.3.1. Content of experiential activities at primary level

The primary school experience program focuses mainly on self-development activities, life skills, and relationship skills with friends, teachers, and family members. Through experiential activities, students have the opportunity to develop the following personal competencies [4]:

* About general capacity:

1. Self-control and self-learning capacity

1.1. Self-reliance: Able to do one's own work at home and at school according to assignment and guidance.

1.2. Self-affirmation and protection of legitimate rights and needs. Awareness of one's own rights and desires; initial knowledge of how to present and exercise some legitimate rights and needs.

1.3. Self-control of emotions, attitudes and behaviors

- Recognize and express your own feelings and emotions; know how to share your feelings and emotions with others.

- Be nice to everyone; don't say or do things that offend others.

- Follow your study and work plan properly; don't be too busy playing, affecting your studies and other things.

1.4. Career self-orientation

- Express your interests and abilities.

- Know the names, main activities and roles of some occupations; relate that knowledge to the occupations of family members.

1.5. Self-study, self-improvement

- Be able to summarize and present what has been learned.

- Recognize and correct errors in the test through teacher comments.

- Be conscious of learning from teachers, friends and others to consolidate and expand knowledge.

- Be conscious of learning and following good examples.