It is a well-known fact that skills related to the visual-spatial area are quite effective for brain development during early childhood. A concept education program, based on a concept map applicable in the early period of childhood, is thought to be effective in developing visual-spatial perception skills. This study was conducted to examine the effect of a concept education program, developed on the basis of a configured concept map, on the visual-spatial perception mechanisms of children between the ages of 48 and 60 months. The study group consisted of children ranging in age between 48 and 60 months and who were selected through random sampling from central kindergartens. The experimental group and control group each included 59 children. For data collection, the Children's Demographic Information Form developed by the researchers, the Frostig Developmental Test of Visual Perception, and the Boehm Test of Basic Preschool Concepts-3 were used. Additionally, the Concept Education Program Based on Configured Concept Map was developed by consulting expert opinions, and this program was applied to the experimental group. The SPSS 24 statistical package was used for the statistical analysis of the data, with the results being assessed using frequencies and percentages, t test and one-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA, KWVA). In addition, the correlations between the Frostig Developmental Test of Visual Perception and the Boehm-3 test were examined. In assessing the relationship between pre- and post-test scores, the findings indicate that a significant increase occurred in favor of the post-test results. However, a significant relationship favoring the experimental group was present between the post-test scores of experimental and control groups. No significant difference was found between the post-test/monitoring measurements regarding visual-spatial perception and Boehm-3 concept skills. The data suggest that the concept education program supported the development of children's visual perception skills. On the basis of the study results, parents, teachers and researchers are recommended to use concept maps in the learning processes, particularly those related to visual-spatial perception.

Keywords: early childhood, visual perception, education on concept