Why moms should encourage kids to be artistic

MANILA, Philippines - When one sees a child drawing, dancing, reciting poetry, acting, singing or wanting to play a musical instrument, parents should be more than happy to encourage these activities in their children. These inclinations are not necessarily about becoming career artists later on; more importantly, they are about building character.

I recall that during my early public school education, the extracurricular activities included drawing and coloring, dance and stage performances, delivery of poems in front of the class, and theater or simple stage performance. Above these, the boys had gardening and carpentry, while the girls had home economics that specifically taught the basics: sewing, cooking, crocheting/tatting and table setting. No one could graduate without going through these activities and getting a passing grade in each one. Thinking back, that just about covered a well-rounded involvement in the arts, and as children we simply enjoyed them without identifying any to be related to a future career.

I know a good number of early learning schools with such activities in their curriculum. In fact, along with the arts, simple cooking and baking are taught to both girls and boys. I believe these basic activities also rightly belong in the arts category since the step-by-step making of food involves a form of artistry in delivering something delightful for all of our 12 senses. There is ample camaraderie and rapport between the children during these sessions and their ability to concentrate and to think is sharpened greatly.

I hope our public schools will continue to include these “old subjects” that should go hand in hand with the essential academics and activities given to the students of today.

More than one may consciously realize, art for children helps them to creatively approach situations that come their way, including the understanding of accountability and forging human relationships.

Given our age of technology vis-à-vis the skyrocketing cost of living that engulfs the fast-paced world we live in, art may not appear to be a practical direction most parents would adhere to. This is probably one cause of fear as to why a lot of young children, attracted to artistic activities, do not get an approving signal from their parents.

However, I came across a very enlightening book entitled The Artistic Edge: Skills Children Need to Succeed in an Increasingly Right Brain World and it just about spelled out and articulated how I believe the arts to be meaningful to every human being especially during the formative years. Author and arts and leadership educator Lisa Phillips who wrote the book pointed out the Top 10 Skills Children Learn from the Arts.

I would like to share this list of skills with all parents of young children, especially those whose immediate worry might be that their encouragement of the arts may lead to their children making “bad career choices.” I also call on fathers who may have the notion that their young sons may be compromising their masculinity when engaging in these artistic activities.

The top 10 skills children learn from the arts

1. Creativity. Being able to imagine spontaneously, approach tasks from different perspectives and think “outside of the box” will distinguish your child from others. In an arts program, your child will be asked to recite a monologue in six different ways, create a painting that represents a memory, or compose a new rhythm to enhance a piece of music. If children have practice in thinking creatively, it will come naturally to them now and in their future career.

2. Confidence. The skills developed through theater not only train one to convincingly deliver a message, but also build the confidence one needs to take command of the stage. Theater training lets children practice stepping out of their comfort zone and allows them to make mistakes and learn from them in rehearsal. This process gives children the confidence to perform in front of large audiences.

3. Problem solving. Artistic creations are born through the solving of problems. How do I turn this clay into a sculpture? How do I portray a particular emotion through dance? How will my character react in this situation? Without even realizing it, kids that participate in the arts are consistently being challenged to solve problems. All this practice of problem solving develops children’s skills in reasoning and understanding. This will help develop important problem-solving and decision skills necessary for success in any career.

4. Perseverance. When a child picks up a violin for the first time, she/he knows that playing Bach the right away is not an option; however, when that child practices, learns the skills and techniques and doesn’t give up, that Bach concerto is that much closer. In an increasingly competitive world, where people are being asked to continually develop new skills, perseverance is essential to achieving success.

5. Focus. The ability to focus is a key skill developed through ensemble work. Keeping a balance between listening and contributing involves a great deal of concentration and focus. It requires each participant to not only think about their role, but how their role contributes to the big picture of what is being created. Recent research has shown that participation in the arts improves children’s abilities to concentrate and focus in other aspects of their lives.

6. Non-verbal communication. Through experiences in theater and dance education, children learn to breakdown the mechanics of body language. They experience different ways of moving and how those movements communicate different emotions. They are then coached in performance skills to ensure they are portraying their character effectively to the audience.

7. Receiving constructive feedback. Receiving constructive feedback about a performance or visual art piece is a regular part of any arts instruction. Children learn that feedback is part of learning and it is not something to be offended by or to be taken personally. It is something constructive and helpful. The goal is the improvement of skills and evaluation is incorporated in every step of the process. Each arts discipline has built-in parameters to ensure that critique is a valuable experience and greatly contributes to the success of the final piece.

8. Collaboration. Most arts disciplines are collaborative in nature. Through them, children practice working together, sharing responsibility, and compromising with others to accomplish a common goal. When a child has a part to play in a music ensemble, or a theater or dance production, they begin to understand that their contribution is necessary for the success of the group. Through these experiences children gain confidence and start to learn that their contributions have value even if they don’t have the biggest role.

9. Dedication. When kids get to practice following through with artistic endeavors that result in a finished product or performance, they learn to associate dedication with a feeling of accomplishment. They practice developing healthy work habits of being on time for rehearsals and performances, respecting the contributions of others, and putting effort into the success of the final piece. In the performing arts, the reward for dedication is the warm feeling of an audience’s applause that comes rushing over you, making all your efforts worthwhile.

10. Accountability. When children practice creating something collaboratively they get used to the idea that their actions affect other people. They learn that when they are not prepared or on time, other people suffer. Through the arts, children also learn that it is important to admit that you made a mistake and take responsibility for it. Because mistakes are a regular part of the process of learning in the arts, children begin to see that mistakes happen. We acknowledge them, learn from them and move on.

The brain is an organ that continues to adapt and grow based on stimulation from its environment. Unfamiliar experiences such as learning new skills enables the brain to build new neurons, allowing it to work more efficiently. This emphasizes the need for the arts once more, because these skills affect and improve our capacity even at a cellular level.

Hence one can conclude that no activity is wasted because of the way the every experience improves our thinking capacity and, most of all, our well-being.