Early Childhood & the Arts
2 Min Read • Early Childhood
It is common knowledge that children are playful and need to explore and play, build and create, but how often do we associate this with their brain development?
A playful childhood isn’t just fun, it is imperative to creating a fully developed brain. Research states that “the prime time to develop specific knowledge, skills, and competencies is in the first few years of a child’s life” (EarlyArts). Burnadette Duffy (2006) further expounds that “by encouraging creativity and imagination, we are promoting children’s ability to explore and comprehend their world and increasing their opportunities to make new connections and reach new understandings.” Creativity and opportunity for activities that promote imagination also build children’s self esteem and personalities. There is also a connection between musical experiences and mathematical processing. David Sousa, a Florida Superintendent, acknowledged that the most powerful effects are found in programs that integrate the arts with subjects in the core curriculum, suggesting that “arts integration causes both students and teachers to rethink how they view the arts and generates conditions that are ideal for learning.”
We know this, so how do we implement this fully? Here is a Resource Roundup of ten awesome sites with hundreds of arts integrated activities and lessons for early childhood education. Enjoy!
KinderART
KinderArt gathered and listed multiple preschool/early childhood education art lesson plans. Their activities are best suited for ages 2 to 5 years.
Education.com
Education.com offers a full list of preschool arts and crafts activities. They have hundreds of crafts for creativity, with a mix of crafts and actual arts lessons.
Incredible @rt Department
Hot Chalk
A to Z Teacher Stuff
Funderstanding
Art and Creativity in Early Childhood Education
Art and Creativity in Childhood operates under the knowledge that art is good brain food. They know that art engages children’s senses in open-ended play and develops cognitive, social-emotional and multi-sensory skills and have build activities that foster childhood development.
Gryphon House
Early Childhood Teacher
Early Childhood Teacher has compiled a list of free online resources to help keep your teaching tools sharp and up-to-date.
We Are Teachers
We are Teachers provides 5 High-Impact, Low-Prep Activities for Creative Arts in Early Childhood that are sure to be the most impactful part of your curriculum.
