The article develops and substantiates a methodology for cultivating foundational elements of historical thinking in primary school students (ages 6–10) through systematic integration of examples from folk oral art, particularly Uzbek genres such as ertaklar (fairy tales), afsonalar (legends), maqollar (proverbs), topishmoqlar (riddles), and fragments of heroic epics (e.g., Alpomish, Gorogly). Folk oral creativity is conceptualized as an authentic, living source of historical-cultural memory that symbolically encodes information about ancestral ways of life, societal values, cause-and-effect relations, continuity and change over generations, and diverse human perspectives—making it an ideal, age-appropriate vehicle for early historical education. Grounded in constructivist principles, culturally responsive teaching, and Uzbekistan’s state priorities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage while fostering national-patriotic and moral upbringing, the methodology comprises five sequential stages: (1) immersive storytelling and establishing awareness of intergenerational transmission and temporal distance; (2) targeted analysis of historical markers in folklore (daily life, customs, technologies, social norms) to distinguish “then” from “now” and trace change over time; (3) building historical empathy and multiperspectivity through role-playing, retelling from different viewpoints, and comparison of oral variants; (4) introductory source criticism by exploring mechanisms of oral transmission, regional adaptations, and symbolic versus literal truth; (5) creative synthesis and reflection via dramatization, family folklore collection, simple visual timelines, and discussions connecting personal/community heritage to collective national history. Illustrative lesson sequences using Uzbek oral traditions demonstrate increased student motivation, deeper cultural self-identification, improved inferential skills from narrative evidence, and emergent historical consciousness. The proposed approach effectively bridges traditional oral heritage with contemporary primary education goals, contributing to holistic development of critical, creative, and value-oriented competencies in young learners.

historical thinking, primary school students, folk oral art, Uzbek folklore, oral traditions, ertaklar, maqollar, afsonalar, topishmoqlar, cultural heritage, continuity and change, historical empathy, source criticism, constructivist pedagogy, national-patriotic education, intangible cultural heritage, primary education Uzbekistan, Central Asian epics, inquiry-based learning, moral upbringing

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