Why Art Class (and Art Teachers) Are Important

Teacher Collaboration and the Multi-Method Approach

I think it goes without saying that most teachers today have a much more intimidating job than the teachers who taught me. As the mom of a GATE/Seminar student and one with special needs, I can not imagine teaching the same subject in the same capacity to both my learners at the same time.

One benefit my teachers had was a collaborative approach to curriculum. I had two art periods, one music period, and three gym periods per week. During those classes, I often learned lessons that had a direct impact on the curriculum I was learning in class. For instance, when I was learning about American explorers in 5Th Grade, each student was required to create a song and an illustrated song book. My music teacher taught us songs from historical time periods, and we used those melodies and put our own lyrics about the explorers to the tune. Our art teacher then helped us illustrate the song book with the lyrics. I still remember some historical facts to the tune of my classmates' songs.

A favorite memory from my high school history final exam was hundreds of kids humming School House Rock when we were asked to write the Preamble to the Constitution. School House Rock is the perfect learning tool because it takes art, music and history (or grammar or math) and makes it unforgettable.

Visual Spatial Perception

Every time someone releases a study saying that video games increase visual perception, I cringe.  Shoot-em up games (for the record, the last games I want my kids to be playing) can increase tracking speed and can also strengthen problem solving skills. You know what really improves tracking? Playing Catch. Having a ball coming directly at your head, watching it come from far away and grow in size as it hurdles toward your cranium... now THAT is visual tracking.

Art can also fill this need. Two dimensional art that fools the eye and three dimensional sculptural art, as well as manipulating color change and tonal change, all improve eye skills and teach the brain how to SEE. Teaching dimensional drawing and perspective can also improve perception and math skills.

The geomteric pattern above is from a twelve year old boy complete with his own color key. He designed a room for his wall and his parents hired me (through PaintGreen) to interpret his highly complex visual design. By choosing opposite colors on the color wheel, his design takes on a very striking image. You can tell this is a highly perceptive child. His art shows a highly evolved understanding of color, design and math.

Greater Understanding of Historical and Social Impact

Did you know that Abstract Expressionists were hired as Camofleurs, or camouflage painters for aircraft carriers and tankers in World War II? They painted abstract geometric designs on a grand scale so that submarines looking for the perfect places to hit a boat for the greatest structural impact, would have a hard time knowing which was the front or back of a ship. This was called Dazzle Camouflage. Ironically, the abstraction of form became the best way to confuse the enemy in a completely practical application.

The above paintings of animals are from a lesson on Tanzanian Rock Art. Not only did the students learn about faux finishing and how to make a piece of wood appear like old stone, we also talked about what animals were present in Tanzania at the time the paintings were created, what substances would be used and the color palette,  why they might choose animals as their subject matter, etc.  For instance, as an area become irrigated, new plant life and animal life may enter that geographic area that never before existed. The lack or certain symbols or depictions helps us date the art, and tells us what was going on economically and socially during that time.

Taking it a step further, students have a greater understanding of chemical properties by examining which colors have the greatest staying power, and what is takes to make a painting last. Besides pigment and the chemical understanding of how one achieves that color, there is also what makes the color adhere to the wall/stone/fabric.

Hand and/or other Muscle Strength

I have come under fire for downplaying handwriting (mostly because of the growing population of people I know who may never be able to express themselves with a pen or pencil, but are in no way incapable of expressing themselves or their ideas). For those of us able to hold a pencil or pen, the free flowing expressive line of art may be a jumping off point for improving line skills; and manipulating clay can strengthen muscles need to provide a strong grasp of the pencil.

Sensory Needs

Art can be a great way to fill certain sensory needs. If your student loves unique texture, working with paper mache, clay or other pliable medium may be a great way to introduce texture and connect with what the student is learning. However, for some students, these medium can also be so stimulating that they are not effective to teaching.

The mask above is a paper mache creation by my son Connor and me. Connor likes paper mache in small doses but cannot handle as it dries on his skin. (We also had a lively discussion of form and underlying shapes used to create the topography of the face.) Paper Mache is a great sensory tool for him in short, controlled applications.

Expressive Language

I know their are art purists out there who despise teaching curriculum based projects. They adhere to a love of expression and free flowing thought that can't be encumbered by parameters or rules. They prefer to trail-blaze and express and I although I love curriculum-based collaboration, I applaud their purism.

Some students are not made to be verbal. Some write. Others draw. Some play basketball. Art can be a great way to encourage expressive language, especially when paired with drama or writing.  The mural above is a piece of a 6 foot long based on the the book, The Day the Crayons Quit. In the book, each crayon gripes about why they should be used more or less and the personalities emerge as they do so. First, children were chosen to read a crayon's story in their voice. It's a very funny book, and this can get very silly. Then, I had each child choose a random popsicle stick. On one side was a color, on the other was written land, sea or air. The child drew something that might exist in that space in that particular color. Then we cut them out and pasted them to a landscape background. The idea is to think beyond the traditional uses for each color and to get creative about how to use your crayons.

Nothing Says Thank You (or I love You) Like Something Made by Hand

The banner above is a collaboration of  SibShops participants. SibShops are workshops dedicated to the siblings of kids with special needs and they address the emotional toll that sibs can experiencing with the different needs of their siblings with special needs.

The banner was made as a thank you to the adult responsible for the workshops. It hangs in her office and by her own admission, when she is having a rough week and asking herself why she does her job, the banner is her reminder. Billions of refrigerators can't be wrong: we love kid art.

Reaching Those That "Can't be Reached"/ A Chance to Shine

You here it all the time, "If it wasn't for Football, I don't think I would have stayed in school," or "I was never late for Art Class." Some kids shine in different areas, and for that reason, I love Vocational Technical Opportunities. Not all of us can be Rocket Scientists. Some of us create the cool Rocket Logo. Or recycle rocket fragments to make metal dragonflies. Or film the commercial that gets other kids interested in Rocket Science School. Sometimes, the arts provide the way to shine that other subjects don't.

And for everyone of those kids, there is a kid stiffled by the fear of being asked to draw, or express, or perform. OR there is a kid whose physical being does not allow them to do this without help. For these kids, art teachers and therapists have to challenge themselves to find a way to include them in the process, if it's using a different medium, or tool or rolling a wheelchair through washable paint onto a canvas on the floor.

Just as art can be a way to bring meaning to learning, for some we need to find the meaning for them to create art. Am I saying we should teach Art because Art is the essence of life? No. I am saying we need to teach Art because it is an important form of expression and a piece of an understanding of who we are are and where we stand in our world as we perceive it.