I often wonder what other people see in the art being created in an early childhood classroom. What do they make of these splashes of paint and collages covered with glue and seemingly random bits and bobs?
Creative Genius: Tinkering and Problem Solving
In this article from the Wall Street Journal, as well as in this TED Talk, Steven Johnson tells a fascinating story of an Indonesian city, devastated by the tsunami in 2004. This city had received eight high-tech neo-natal incubators from relief organizations to aid them in caring for their youngest patients. Several years later, a researcher visited the hospital in Indonesia and found that not one of those incubators was still in working order. And so they sat, broken, and in storage.
Who Needs Creativity?
With our country’s current emphasis on standardized, test-based education, there’s ready access to loads of statistics on how states, districts, schools, even individual children are scoring on math and reading (important, to be sure). But can anyone know how much creativity is being nurtured and encouraged in any one school or classroom? No one’s following the creativity quotient of every schoolchild in America.
TinkerLab Book Blog Tour: Q&A with Rachelle Doorley
Whether you’re a teacher or a parent, if you’re interested in promoting creativity, problem solving, curiosity, critical thinking, and tinkering in the lives of the children you love and teach, then get ready —- you’re going to love Rachelle Doorley’s new book,Tinkerlab: A Hands-On Guide for Little Inventors
It’s OK NOT to Share Section 5: Creativity, Persistence, and Empty Praise
The Benefits of Arts and Crafts (Yes, Both!) for Kids
It’s funny how we often debate things with a black/white, either/or paradigm.
Like whether preschool is for play or learning, for instance.
Or order vs chaos. (Controlled chaos for me, please.)
Or a little bit country vs a little bit rock n roll.
Or arts and crafts.
Yes, for many in the early education/child development world, the debate about arts and crafts rages on, with nary a UN negotiator to step in and help.
Like most debates, however, camping out in either extreme generally misses the point.
Big Art Projects for Small Artists
Any invitation to create yields wonderful benefits for children! Self-expression, fine motor skills, and creative thinking are all brought to the table every time. Art can even be therapeutic! But there’s something special that happens when you work on a bigger scale. With big art projects, larger motor movements are often encouraged, strengthening both the small muscles in the hand, used in most art projects, but also inviting the larger muscle groups in the arms, and sometimes even the whole body! With a larger project and bigger movements, kids who typically steer clear of the art table are often more easily enticed. Big art projects also add a social and linguistic element as kids often work together to fill up such a big canvas. And with such big projects and big movements, outdoors is often an ideal studio — perfect for this time of year! [Read more…]
Secrets of the Fearless Mess-Makers
Isn’t it Time to Create?
Faige Kobre’s guest post here about the therapeutic nature of art was a reminder to me to be more intentional about pulling out art supplies to provide an invitation for my boys to create. I’m not sure what’s been holding me back, but it certainly wasn’t their interest!
Art Therapy Every Child Could Use
Curious about Art Therapy? I have been! A huge thanks to Faige Kobre of EduArt 4 Kids for sharing her expertise in today’s post.
Many of us have the vague feeling that art is really good for us. We know it makes us more creative and stuff like that. However, research shows that doing art is not only for creativity but, it actually increases the levels of serotonin in the brain which is what is used to help lift depression. Art also helps people learn to like, accept and control their feelings. Feelings of anger, fear, jealously and aggression.
There is even a whole field that uses art to help children and adults heal from painful and abusive situations. This discipline is called art therapy. [Read more…]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 14
- Next Page »
