<![CDATA[This qualitative study explored how Lebak culture was introduced through center-based learning and how teacher-guided activities facilitated critical thinking among young children. The study was conducted in one early childhood education classroom in Lebak Regency, Indonesia, involving two teachers and fifteen children aged 5–6 years selected purposively. Data were generated through classroom observations, interviews, and documentation. They were analyzed using Miles and Huberman’s interactive model, while Facione’s six critical thinking indicators guided the interpretation of children’s classroom responses. Findings showed that Lebak culture was incorporated systematically through planning, implementation, and learning evaluation. During planning, teachers developed culturally grounded materials by considering children’s interests, experiences, and questions and collaborating with colleagues. During implementation, four learning centers used concrete materials, videos, discussion, and creative activities to explore local cultural knowledge. Teacher-guided questions encouraged children to observe, compare, discuss, justify, and reconstruct their cultural experiences. These interactions created opportunities for six manifestations of critical thinking: interpretation, analysis, evaluation, inference, explanation, and self-regulation. The findings suggest that local culture can function as a meaningful cognitive resource when teachers move beyond factual transmission and provide structured opportunities for inquiry and dialogue. The study recommends developing classroom observation guidelines and professional development programs to help teachers facilitate, recognize, and document children’s critical thinking during culturally responsive learning. Because the study involved one classroom and a small purposive sample, its findings should be interpreted contextually rather than generalized broadly to all early childhood education settings in Indonesia.]]>
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