The Arts and Academia: Unlocking Hidden Benefits
Motivation, inspiration, creativity, self-esteem — we associate all these traits with success, especially in young artists, musicians, and actors working toward their dreams. Science has demonstrated that while these strengths may come more naturally to some than others, participation in arts education both in and out of the classroom can bolster not only these but a surprising variety of other skills.
A celebration of everything great about arts education is on offer the week of September 12th-18th, as Americans for the Arts conducts their annual National Arts in Education Week campaign. It’s all about directing awareness to the unique benefits arts education is poised to offer students, especially unexpected skill boosts like math, literacy, and social tolerance.
Not only is arts education linked with improved math scores, verbal skills, and overall literacy, it’s also associated with overall cognitive growth, including better temporal reasoning skills and even a higher IQ (source, 2, 3, 4)
The study of art, music, and theatre is uniquely poised to offer children a glimpse into other time periods, cultures, and personal experiences, fostering a sense of empathy and understanding toward others and promoting social tolerance; in addition, group activities centered around the arts provide children with opportunities to develop their communication skills by learning to cooperate, use conflict resolution, and ultimately, accept differences in peers (source, 2)
Younger children are able to reap significant motor benefits through both art and dance, refining fine motor skills with the creation of hands-on projects and gross motor skills through whole-body movement; the creation of art can also help to improve hand-eye coordination in general (source)
Eager to join in the celebration of all that arts education offers? Chime in with other participants by sharing your positive arts ed memories using the hashtag #BecauseOfArtsEd — it’s a great time to shout out that favorite art teacher, bandleader, or theatre director.
Brought to you By:
Neve Spicer
Chief Editor
WeTheParents.org
