The Importance of Art in Early Childhood Development

21st April 2016

The human brain consists of two halves: the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere. The left hemisphere is used for logical and analytical thinking, such as maths, science and reading lessons. In contrast, the right hemisphere is used for emotional perceptions and creativity, such as arts and crafts.

The traditional school curriculum has shifted over recent years, expanding from the core subjects like numeracy and literacy, to include more lessons in arts and crafts. Not only does this give children an all-round better and more varied education, but it also promotes creativity and enables them to recognise different abilities and talents they may have, outside of the standard academic ones.

Emotional satisfaction

If your child does any description of artwork, whether it’s modelling clay, painting, drawing, making a college etc. they will experience a certain degree of emotional satisfaction.

Although to some, this might sound a bit far-fetched, there are definitely clear benefits to our children expressing themselves through the medium of art. The level of control and power they have over how they use certain materials to create something unique, gives them satisfaction and helps their development in more ways than one.

Independance

When it comes to art, there is no right or wrong, so children are free to make their own decisions about what they do and how they do it. This teaches them how to be independent and trust in their own judgement and options. Ultimately, they are learning how to take charge of the decision-making process all by themselves.

Self-esteem and social skills

Art allows children to express how they are thinking and what they are feeling. Some children struggle to communicate this verbally, so allowing them to express themselves through art is an alternative way to understand your child more.

Also, being part of an art class gives the opportunity to receive feedback from fellow classmates – this can be just as valuable as doing the artwork itself. Positive and constructive feedback should always be encouraged and will help your child understand that their work has an impact on others i.e some will really love it, whereas others might only like aspects of it. Working in a group will also help your child practice their social skills, like sharing, negotiating and taking turns.

Sensory exploration

Exploring art from a young age helps your child to be in touch with all their senses – sight, touch, smell etc. Exploring how the paint brush moves across the page and how different size strokes can make different shapes on the paper, may seem a simple thing to you and me, but to a young child, these are all important and worthwhile things to learn and discover.

As your child grows older, the learning moves away from the senses and becomes more about symbols. This will gradually happen as and when your child becomes aware of real objects they see around them, and how these might represent a feeling or emotion.

Language development

Art also plays an important role in language development and writing ability. Your child will begin to consider which words to use from their vocabulary range to best describe the piece of art they have created, and why they have chosen to create it in the way they did. Therefore, they will learn new words and their meanings e.g. colours, shapes, objects and many more.

Tiny World
Here at Tiny World, we place a large emphasis on each child’s development by carrying out a variety of different activities, including arts and crafts, with the children. This helps create a nurturing environment and one that your child can thrive in. To find out more about the types of activities we carry out, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us today.