How the Arts Develop the Brain and Contribute to Learning

for ALL Young Children

Sandy Putnam-Franklin & Su TheriaultInstitute for Community Inclusion

University of Massachusetts, Boston

GET SMARTWITH ART

How Art Makes You Smart

What is arts education?

• Movement and Dance• Music• Theatre Arts• Visual Arts

Research Reinvisioned for the 21st Century

Early Arts Education

• Exploration• Experimentation• Engagement of the senses• Discussion

Guiding Principles forArts Education•The goal of arts education for young children is to develop and sustain their natural curiosity, expressiveness, and creativity.

•Arts education begins with a foundation that emphasizes exploration, experimentation, engagement of the senses, and discussion as paths to understanding.

Massachusetts Guidelines for Preschool Learning Experiences (2003)

Best Practices for Arts Experienceswith Young Children• Provide developmentally

appropriate materials, equipment, activities.

• Provide opportunities to explore a variety of materials, media, tools.

• Extend children’s learning with verbal stimulation

Universal Design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. - Ron Mace, Architect

Universal Design considers the needs of thebroadest possible range of users.

Benefits of Universal Design • Increases access for all

• Encourages students to participate and try new ideas

• Increases retention of all students• Respects individual learning styles

Accommodations

• Support one student

• Require extra planning time

• Highlight differences

Either Accommodations or UD

Both Accommodations and UD

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What does Universal Design for Learning mean in early childhood?Creating environments, curriculum, and assessment

strategies that accommodate the widest variety of young children’s learning styles and needs. It also involves including families in the process.

Key Elements of Universal Design in Early Childhood Education

• Environment• Curriculum &

Instruction • Assessment • Family involvement

The Arts Contribute to the Development of the Whole Child

• Brain development• Gross motor development• Fine motor development• Visual memory development• Social-emotional

development• Cognitive development

Brain Development

Neural Plasticity • The brain’s greatest capacity for change occurs during the early years

Integration • There needs to be good communication (integration) between both sides of the brain

Neural PlasticityUse It or Lose It

The human brain at birth

6 Years Old 14 Years Old

Multiple Means of Engagement: Practice and Repetition

Integration of the Left/Right Hemispheres of the Brain

http://www.brain-based-learning.com

Sensory Perceptual DevelopmentA process in which the child develops the skilland ability to take in, interpret, and respond toinformation from the environment.

Sensory Experiences

• Finger painting• Handling textures• Finger plays• Coloring• Play dough, clay• Paper activities• Manipulative activities

Physical activities have cognitive value.

• Physical education and recess• Gross motor activities• Sensory motor experiences• Combine movement and music

Movement and dance affect body and brain development.• Position in space• Directionality• Strength• Body control/coordination• Balance• Flexibility• Functional movement patterns• Personal space• Expression

Provide variety in movement.

Windows of Opportunityfor Motor Development

•Basic gross-motor skills: prenatal to age 5•Fine motor skills: birth to age 9

Vestibular Stimulation

Move in, move up, move all aroundKeep the brain and body sound

The more you moveThe more you’ll prove

That spinning and turningAre good for learning!

- From Learning With the Body in Mind by Eric Jensen

Visual Arts• Art is way of thinking and demonstrating the product of thinking.• Visual learning = improvement in reading, creativity, math scores.• Drawing complements the writing and thinking process. • Drawing forces us to visualize and plan our actions. • Early exposure to visual images are critical to stimulate the brain.• Visual tools can help students think.

The Link BetweenDrawing and WritingBoth:• Are ways of using pictorial and

written symbols to represent ideas and feelings

• Involve psychomotor skills• Depend on similar cognitive

abilities• Involve expressive arts• Are developmental

Fine Motor Skills

• Grasp• Strength• Control• Dexterity• Hand dominance

Language and Literacy Development“As early as age three or four years, children can recite poetry, memorize, invent, and perform finger plays, and begin rhyming words. These are some of the fundamental tools for developing language skills.” - Goals 2000 Task Force Report

•Display reproductions of art•Read children’s books about artists in various fields•Visits to art museums, galleries and local studios•Guest artists visits to classrooms•Children’s books that help them develop appreciation of art concepts and art work

Expose young children to art resources.

Engage young children in talking about art.

• Ideas• Process• Materials• Knowledge/concepts/

vocabulary• Reflection• Planning

- Sounda, Guha & Qiu, 2007

Children with language-related delays and children who are second-language learners especially benefit from having their experiences and understandings communicated through art, a nonverbal form of expression that is readily available to them.

The Effects of Music on Brain Development and Learning“Music… excites inherent brain patterns and promotes their use in complex reasoningtasks.” - Black, 1997

Research suggests that music…

• Facilitates reading• Facilitates awareness and discrimination of sounds• Enhances visual-motor skills• Regulates stress• Enhances memory systems

- Eric Jensen, Arts With the Brain in Mind

Dramatic ArtsChildren… benefit from play-based instruction in whichthey invent dramatic play scenarios. Sociodramatic play increases oral language use and enables children to plan, negotiate, compose, and carry out the “script” of theirplay. These skills are related to the development ofreading comprehension.

- Snow et.al. (1998) Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children

Social/emotional Development• Self concept• Confidence• Expression of feelings• Communication of ideas• Relationships• Respect• Understanding of others• Community

Provide ALL young learners…• Enough time to express

themselves• Safety to experiment• Respect for their work and

their efforts• Interest so the child wants to

continue• Support for a wide range of

expression

Provide ALL young learners variety

in…• Formats: large/small, vertical/flat• Surfaces: papers, textures, wood, cloth• Media: tempera paint, finger paint, water color, markers, chalk (wet/dry), photography, sculpture, construction, fabric, paper, wood • Locations: areas of the room; indoor/outdoor• Social groupings: solo, partners, small group, large group

The Ultimate Test: 4 Key Questions1. Are ALL children able to

experiment freely with art and explore what happens?

2. Will each child’s work look different from the others?

3. Is the goal of the activity the children’s enjoyment rather than a product to please adults?

4. Will the child’s effort lead to something that is satisfying to the child at his or her level of development?

Research on the Arts and Learning Online ResourcesCritical Links: Learning in the Arts and Student Academic and Social Developmenthttp://www.nasaa-arts.org/publications/critical-evidence.pdf

Report on Learning, Arts, and the Brain: http://www.dana.org/uploadedFiles/News_and_Publications/Special_Publications/Learning,%20Arts%20and%20the%20Brain_ArtsAndCognition_Compl.pdf