Image credit: Turned on its Head dance company Children love to move! In fact, we were all born to do it. Dance is a fun and creative way to get young children connecting with their bodies. Research has demonstrated it also directly helps with young children’s physical and sensorimotor development. However, while many teachers and parents know that children’s creative movement is important, many are hesitant to do it as they don’t think they are good at it! I recently spoke with Liz Clark, an English early years dance artist, about the importance of dance and creative movement in children’s lives. Liz is the Artistic Director of the Turned on its Head, a dance company that has produced popular children’s dance performances including Sponge and Shiny. In our conversation, Liz shares some fantastic ideas for how adults can do creative movement at home with little ones – no fancy equipment…
Make a cardboard construction
Recycled cardboard is one of my favourite materials for children’s art activities. I like it because it is: Easily available to everyoneCheap or free to get. This means that parents or teachers that don’t have a budget for materials can still use itEncourages the reuse of something that would otherwise be thrown away In this post, I share an art activity that can do be done using recycled cardboard. It is best suited to kids aged 2 to 10 years old but can be adapted to any age. The activity is perfect to do at home or in the classroom! Image credit: Paigen Muller Designing the art activity When I am putting together a children’s art activity, I always start off brainstorming the following three questions: What materials do I have available or what I can afford to buy?What are the interests of the kids I am working with?How have…
How to support children’s creativity at home
I talk a lot about the importance of creativity and materials in children’s learning on this website. Most of the posts I have previously written have been aimed at teachers and creative professionals working with children. However, parents also play an important role in supporting children’s learning. To be honest, nearly every parent I have met has been incredibly interested in hearing about what they can do to help to support their child’s creativity. So, I have decided to start writing some posts especially for parents. Kicking off with this one. I have put together five hot tips for supporting children’s creativity with materials. These ideas build on a podcast I recently did for ‘Rial Talk .In the podcast I talk about the importance of art and children’s play with materials in education. More specifically, I argue that both art and materials play a critical role in encouraging creativity as they…
Why art is important in children’s learning
Art can play an important part in children’s learning. This post shares five key reasons why. “Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.” Article 31, United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child Many education theorists have argued that art has a central role in children’s learning and development. For example, John Dewey – the founder of American progressive education – argued for the need to integrate art into people’s everyday experiences. Eillot Eisner then talked about the criticality of art in public school curriculum and Maxine Greene wrote about its significance in allowing people to imagine the world from multiple perspectives. All of these amazing thinkers built their arguments on the same issue: that art has been marginalised from school curriculum in place of syllabus focused on maths, English, science and technology. A recent example of this can…
Jessica den Hartog’s art made from recycled plastic
The use of plastic in classrooms is becoming an important issue for teachers. For example, public schools in the United Kingdom have been encouraged to eliminate single-use plastics (like straws, disposable water bottles and glitter) by the end of 2022. However, plastic can also be a wonderful material for artistic experimentation, as Dutch designer Jessica den Hartog shares with us in this post. Jessica is a researcher and designer whose artistic practice has explored the relationship between colour and recycled plastic. Based in Maastricht in the Netherlands, her art focuses on the importance of experimentation with the material. This is in contrast to making a specific end product. Image: Jessica in her art studio. Credit:Jessica den Hartog Louisa Penfold: I understand you have worked in both styling and design. Can you tell us about your background and how your interest in recycled plastic came about? Jessica den Hartog: My interest…
The importance of woodwork in the early years
This post features a review of Peter Moorhouse’s book ‘Learning Through Woodwork’ – a wonderful publication for practitioners that outlines the importance of woodwork in the early years. Image credit: Peter Moorhouse Back when I was attending kindergarten, in early 1990’s regional Australia, the only cross-cuts saws and drills in use were imaginary ones that I would get out to cut off the boys’ arms. A lot has changed since those days and woodwork – as a creative activity for children to learn – has witnessed an exciting resurgence in preschools around the world. Peter Moorhouse’s recent book‘Learning Through Woodwork: Introducing Creative Woodwork in the Early Years’is a fantastic practical guide for teachers and practitioners working in early years’ settings. Peter is a real-life, professional sculptor who also has 25 years’ experience working as an art educator in schools and kindergartens. In this book, he shares his expert knowledge and tips…
How to buy Christmas gifts for kids that actually promote creativity
Every December I wander through the children’s section of my local department store perusing the latest toys and gadgets. While I am not a mother myself, I get great joy from selecting and buying presents for the little humans in my life. The moment of anticipation when my carefully chosen gift is being unwrapped embodies the true festive feeling of wholesome, consumerist delight. However, I want my gift to do more than just spark momentary joy in my little friend’s heart. I want them to play with it time again and again. I want it to inspire them and most of all, I want my gift to encourage creativity. But with so many choices out there, it can be difficult to know what to buy. With so many options out there, it can be difficult to know what gifts to buy children Creativity is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as…
How to teach creative movement to children
Dance is an important part of both early childhood education and visual art. This post talks about why creative movement is important in children’s learning and introduces the work of Rudolf Laban, one of the pioneers of dance education. Dance in education and art In tribal societies, where no formal education existed, dance was used to tell stories and educate children. Like other art forms, it has also provided a means for people to come to terms with and express difficult feelings that could not be communicated through words. Dance is also a very important part of contemporary art with many major art museums staging specialized performances like you can see in the video below of Tate’s ‘If Tate Modern was Musée de la danse?’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaYSTQGDK7s Why is creative movement important in children’s learning? Anyone who has spent time with children will know that kids love to move and jump around.…
Children’s creative learning through the art of César Baldaccini
This post looks at the art of French sculptor, César Baldaccini. I discuss two of his experimental artistic processes: compression and expansion to consider how these could be used as a starting point for children’s creative learning through material play. This month I will be exploring the work of four artists who have experimented with materials in innovative ways. I will also use each blog post to consider how these processes can be used as a rich starting point for children’s creative learning through play with material. First up is César Baldaccini. Last weekend I saw César’s retrospective at the Centre Pompidou in Paris. Admittedly I had never heard of him before going to the art museum. I loved learning about his prolific artistic career and unusual ways of working with materials. I hope you find his radical artistic processes as inspiring as I did. César Baldaccini “My sculptures developed in line with…