Arts and crafts in elementary school : blending with curriculum
Capstone Project (B.A.) Liberal Studies Department
Abstract
Art integration in primary school classrooms has become less common in recent years due to the No Child Left Behind Act, the increased demand for standardized testing and the lack of funding present in school districts nationwide. The use of art in the classroom, whether blended into the curriculum and/or taught separately, has been proven to motivate children to use their creative minds and in turn increase student success in the academic arena. Students from two different kindergarten classrooms were observed during regular class time and assessed based on how the use of art in the classroom aided in their learning of core subjects. Observations show that every student learns differently, but that students respond to subject matter more positively when art is used in one form or another in regular coursework. The result of this project shows that art is in fact crucial to a student’s learning process and that schools should allocate more money in the budget for increased art use across the curriculum in all primary school grade levels.
