So what is Elementary Art Education?Elementary Art Education is the process of building children’s confidence, and skills in working with a wide variety of materials. Such as drawing, painting, construction, printmaking and several others depending on your school art curriculum.It requires the children to use their imaginations, their surroundings, and from life in general. But most importantly using the principles of Art Design not only builds a child confidence but also strengths their other academic skills”It is True Elementary Art Education does not solve problems, but it does make our children aware of their existence.” Years of research show that it’s closely related to almost everything that we as parents want for our children and demand from our schools, academic achievement, social and emotional development, civic engagement, and equitable opportunity.Why is Teaching Elementary Art Important?Recently, economic and social pressures have considerably impacted Elementary Art Education. In many cases, this has resulted in severely reduced budgets that cuts the Art Education Programs too many times, art is not considered to be part of the curriculum and is taught only at the discretion of the classroom teacher. This needs to change, Teaching Elementary Art is crucial in the overall development of a students’ approach to the world. Art teaches to the right side of the brain, developing and learning creative skills that enhance a student performance in academic achievement and in all areas throughout life.Involvement in Art Education Programs is associated with increased math skills, reading, perceptive ability, critical thinking, and verbal skill. Elementary Art Education can also improve motivation, concentration, and teamwork. A strong Arts program helps close a gap that has left many children behind. Arts class enables those children from a financially challenged background to have a more level playing field with the children around them.”How dull, how very drab the lives of our children would be, if they looked, but did not see, touched, but did not feel, listened, but never took a curtain call.” – Wilson RilesIn closing, Teaching Elementary Art addresses important issues of academic achievements that our children require to succeed in life. When you think about the purposes of education, We’re preparing our children for jobs. We’re preparing them for life after school. And we’re teaching them to be human beings who can enjoy the deeper forms of beauty. Art Education plays a major roll in this development, students flourish when creativity drives learning.”
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The Importance of Art Education for Children
Art education for children had all but disappeared from most American schools. There are many reasons for this phenomenon, some well-intentioned (albeit misguided) and others simply unfortunate. Despite the waning exposure kids have to the arts at school, science continues to demonstrate the many benefits of arts-based learning beginning at a young age. If the future of education continues to deprive children of exposure to the arts, it is up to parents and caregivers to advocate for arts education while finding alternative ways to provide it.The Changing Face of American EducationSeveral key developments in American education have nearly stripped art-related education out of schools. The most common reason cited is funding. A focus on standards has also been instrumental in reducing educational focus on the arts due to schools competing for high marks on testing. As the economy slowly recovers from the economic turmoil of the last decade, schools in many states have begun to rebound from a funding perspective. However, rather than restore arts programs, states and school districts are placed an emphasis on beefing up STEM programs, rather than art-related learning initiatives.Types of Art Education and Their BenefitsCreativity and innovation, both traits highly valued by employers, are developed through arts-related learning. Creativity gives rise to critical thinking, engagement and problem-solving. At every stage of a child’s life, from early childhood through college, art-related exposure and learning has been shown to greatly improve physical, cognitive, social and emotional development. In addition to these proven benefits, arts-related education increases confidence in children as well as focus, perseverance and non-verbal communication. Children learn to better handle constructive feedback and to collaborate with others. Finally, the arts improve a child’s dedication, self-discipline and accountability. Each of these skill sets directly influences a child’s academic success as well. The research reflects a strong correlation between arts education and academic achievement.The Push to Keep Children BalancedEducational experts provide clear recommendations for an educational approach that incorporates the arts. The research leaves little doubt that kids need arts education as a part of a comprehensive and well-rounded education, and to guarantee their future success in life. Parents, caregivers and other family members can help by advocating for more art education programs in your school district. Meanwhile, experts advise not waiting for school programs to expose your kids to the arts. Dance, music, theater and the visual arts are all of equal importance and kids should be introduced to all four in early childhood.Private teachers can provide beneficial learning opportunities however the research is clear that kids derive significantly greater benefit from group classes, lessons and programs. If your community has a children’s arts academy, enroll your kids as early as possible. There is no fear of starting them too early and professional arts educators can tailor classes specifically to a particular age group. Students with that level of involvement were four times more likely to participate in a science or math fair, win an award for writing an essay, or be recognized for academic achievement. Parents are always on the lookout for ways to help their children get ahead. Nothing is more influential and fun than arts-related education.
Art Education and Child Development
Most parents know that giving a child crayons and a coloring book is great way to occupy a kid for a few hours. What many do not know is what an important role art plays in a child’s development. In recent years a multitude of studies have been made available that link art education to a variety of important aspects of childhood learning. Art education has been linked to increased creativity, development of problem solving skills and better communication skills just to start. The skills that can be developed through art education are skills that last a lifetime and can benefit a child into adulthood regardless of what career path that child may choose. Understanding the importance of art education will allow this often undervalued development tool gain momentum in main stream education programs.The first thing that comes to mind for most people when thinking about the relevance of art is the development of creativity. Creativity is an important skill that can be nurtured though art education for children of all ages. Despite popular belief, creativity is relevant to more than just a child’s artistic ability. A creative child will use that skill in all areas of life from problem solving to communication. All of which is needed in everyday learning situations from math and science to reading. The goal of education is to prepare children for their adult life, creativity and problem solving skills are a valuable asset at all points in a person’s life. Many people tend to think that only artists need to be creative but what about the child who is able to come up with a creative solution to resolve a math or science question. It is the child who can resolve problems through reasoning as oppose to memorization that excels in the school setting. These same skills come in handy later on in life when that child finally enters the workforce.Communication skills are also a valuable asset when it comes to success in school and then later success in the workforce. Art can be used as a method to help children develop better communication skills. Everyone has seen young children draw pictures of their house and family members. These types of drawings allow a child to express certain ideas that may be difficult to express through language. Having a child talk about the pictures they draw then serves as a tool to help develop those necessary language skills. As a child gets older art can be used to express the complex emotions that develop throughout childhood. Communication skills are vital to success in a school setting and increasing a child’s ability to communicate will enrich a child’s life well into the future.An increase in ability in the areas of problem solving skills, creativity and communication directly translates to better learning in all areas of education. As more people begin to understand the relationship between art and learning hopefully the number of art related programs in schools will increase. There tends to be more focus on learning the skills associated with reading, writing, math and science. Increasing awareness about the role art education plays in developing these skills is a step in the right direction. This will help society create an education program that provides the best learning environment for our children and will in turn create more productive individuals later in life.