How Does Art Play a Rold in Your Life

Recently I was asked to speak about the importance of art teaching. I had my talking points, but believed the best people to enquire about art education would exist my former students. I reached out and asked them what they learned in art class and how it continues to impact their lives. It was exciting to reconnect and dive deeper into why fine art education is such an important discipline.

We all know the arts are fun for kids, but the arts also aid with fundamental evolution.

Let's take a look at 10 means the arts help kids learn and develop valuable characteristics they will demand equally adults.

i. Inventiveness

Nosotros know the arts are all about creativity because they permit kids to express themselves. Math and scientific discipline are important, of course, merely the visual arts push button kids' creativity and divergent thinking skills to the next level. If children practice thinking creatively, it will come naturally to them now and in their future careers.

Here is what my student, Mori Haynes, Class of 2010 had to say:

"My high school art instruction constructed invaluable foundations for me equally a creative professional person. Simply the very thought that I could have my innate drive as a maker to work creatively in any field of my choice has had a tremendous bear on on my life. Having someone foster and promote my creative growth and ability to solve complicated pattern problems, think critically, and work collaboratively on creative projects has shaped my journey equally a sculptor, as an art outreach educator, equally a marketing professional, and well-nigh recently as a Primary of Architecture pupil."

two. Improved Academic Performance

The arts don't just develop a child's creativity. The skills they learn ofttimes spill over into their academic achievement. A study past the Americans for the Arts states, "A student involved in the arts is four times more likely to exist recognized for bookish achievement." I recollect most of u.s.a. know this, besides.

Here is what my student, Ha Troung, Class of 2012 and Gates Scholarship Awardee had to say:

"I'thousand a second-yr graduate student pursuing my Master of Public Health in Global Epidemiology degree at Emory Academy. I'one thousand interested in the causes, trends, and methods for the control and prevention of health outcomes, particularly in global wellness and the social determinants of health. Studying the visual arts provided invaluable skills and a stiff foundation for the education I'm pursuing today.

As an fine art pupil engaged in several art projects during a semester, I adult skills in research, project design and implementation, and time management. The creativity and innovation I sought for my fine art projects came from using my research and critical thinking skills to comprise multiple influences into my art projects. These skills apply to academic or professional person experiences and disciplines beyond the visual arts.

However, my favorite function of being an art student was learning well-nigh a variety of artworks and the time periods, historical events, and social issues that could have influenced the artist and the message they wished to convey through their fine art. Equally a public health student, I remain very interested in studying how history and societal issues shape wellness outcomes. Like the artists I've studied, I'm always aspiring for a better mode to communicate and showcase the results of a project I'grand working on and so it will enlighten someone, make someone think differently near a topic, or bring attention to an result I care deeply most."

3. Fine-Tuning Fine Motor Skills

For younger kiddos, simple things like holding a paintbrush, making marks with pens, pencils or crayons, and cutting with pair of scissors are important for the development of fine motor skills. Developmental milestones around age three should include drawing a circle and beginning to use prophylactic scissors. Effectually age four, children may exist able to draw a square and begin cutting straight lines with scissors. This continues throughout the years where students begin to merge their technical skills with their creative skills.

Here'southward what my student, Alicia Burgum, Class of 2013 had to say:

"Today, I am a teacher and a freelance artist. I keep to practise about ten orders a year along with my total-time task as an educator. My loftier schoolhouse art classes have prepared me for my piece of work today past giving me a broad range of skills and techniques that I all the same use. In my loftier school classes, I besides developed my overall art style which I believe has not deviated much from what I produce today. As a teacher, fine art is a peachy fashion to make some actress coin on the side. I'm grateful to accept the training working with diverse mediums and designs in loftier school, that take provided me with a strong foundation to make me the artist I am at present."

four. Confidence

While mastering a subject field certainly builds a student'southward confidence, in that location is something special virtually participating in the arts. Using materials that plow into visual stories is magical, and information technology helps students experience more confident. As they improve and see their own progress, their self-conviction continues to grow.

Here's what my student, Elizabeth Hamilton, Class of 2014 had to say:

"The first time I felt a truly fulfilling sense of accomplishment was during all of my fine art classes at Due north Gwinnett High School under the guidance of Ms. Kim and Ms. West. Early on, I didn't empathise the effect art would accept on my future. Creating was more like a game to me and so. I took it seriously, merely nothing compared to what I view it equally today. Non until my inferior twelvemonth of high school did I fully understand the potential my future had in fine art. The art classes and after school activities taught me patience and determination to end whatsoever job brought to me.

To this twenty-four hour period, I always look back at my early on art career and recall 'look how far I've come.' My conviction continued to grow, and since then I've finished my degree in Visual Communication at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and I am at present waiting for my internship with Adult Swim'due south Artistic Group to start in the summertime. Art is my life, and I'll never regret the choices I made early on while in art course."

5. Visual Learning

Drawing, painting, and sculpting in art class help to develop visual-spatial skills. As art educators, we know children need to know more about the world than but what they tin can learn through text and numbers. Art education teaches students how to interpret, criticize, and use visual information, and how to make choices based on that data.

Here's what my student, Mary Truong, Course of 2016 had to say:

"I am currently a junior at Northwestern majoring in visual arts and computer science. I similar edifice computational art installations that allow viewers to participate in the artwork. I recollect these works create a more transformative art feel than passively looking at paintings, and I promise groups interacting with my art have a connection through shared participation. The art I did in high school gave me a technical, creative foundation that prepared me to build these circuitous works."

vi. Determination Making

We know the arts strengthen trouble-solving and critical thinking skills. Learning how to make choices and decisions will certainly carry over into our students' didactics and other parts of life.

Here is what, Jabari Parker, Class of 2008 had to say:

"Art classes requite many students a first hazard to explore their creative potential and estimate how it could chronicle to futurity careers and higher learning opportunities upon graduating. The possibilities are endless every bit long equally you focus on your gifts! With social media and the Cyberspace, y'all truly have the power to reach the world with a point of view only you tin bring! As a printmaker and prepress technician, my high school art classes laid the foundation for the creative person that I am."

7. Perseverance

Every bit we are all aware, the arts can be challenging. I have always said, information technology's chosen fine artpiece of work for a reason! Successful artists don't quit. They acquire that hard work and perseverance pay off. This mindset matters equally they grow. Every bit artists cull their career paths, they will be asked to continually develop new skills and piece of work through difficult projects.

Hither's what, Doo Lee, Grade of 2011 and student torso president had to say:

"I graduated from Yale in 2015 and currently piece of work as a Production Researcher at Google. My team and I produce qualitative data that informs strategic changes to Google'southward advert products. I'm so glad that I took fine art in school because it instilled in me a habit of creativity and pushed me never to quit. I exercise the same encephalon muscles that I use to depict when I try to trouble-solve a difficult work issue or when I'm thinking of ways to present dumbo information in an easy-to-understand manner.

Knowing the principles of design and practicing artistic creativity can aid you distill large ideas into concise forms and organize scattershot thoughts into a compelling narrative. Additionally, taking fine art throughout high school immune me to succeed academically in all my other classes by forcing me to utilise all aspects of my mind. This success in high schoolhouse paved the way for subsequent success in higher and across."

viii. Concentration Skills

As artists persevere through a painting or a drawing, focus and concentration are imperative. We know concentration skills are as well vital for studying and learning in grade besides as completing professional person tasks subsequently in life.

Here's what Allison Eddy, Grade of 2011 had to say:

"I graduated from NGHS in 2011, went on to SCAD to major in animation and now I am an (Expat!) two-D animator, working and living in Halifax, Nova Scotia. High school art classes were vital to me because, although I wanted to exist an artist, I didn't know what that path might wait like, or fifty-fifty where I should showtime. My parents were discouraging; though it came from a place of beloved because no other family unit members were successful artists, we had no roadmap. High school fine art classes gave me the foundation and the language to starting time to figure out what existence an creative person might await like for me. Nowadays, I work in kids' telly ofttimes animative the characters I grew up with for clients similar Disney, Amazon, and Boomerang."

9. Collaboration

Many of the visual art projects I've had my students do require them to work together. They must share responsibleness and compromise to achieve their mutual goal. I recall the arts teach kids their contribution to the group is integral to its success.

Here's what my student, Brandon Whitman, Grade of 2010 had to say:

"One of the most influential skills I learned from my high schoolhouse art days that I still employ today is perspective. I work at a credit spousal relationship as a mortgage loan originator. While this career is pretty far from a career in the arts, I accept plant that a lot of skills that drive my success as a loan originator were derived from my experiences and lessons learned in my high schoolhouse art classes.

For case, in fine art class, nosotros were taught that a unmarried piece of art could exist interpreted or viewed differently depending on where y'all stand, what kind of mood y'all are in when viewing it, etc. In my role when I am presented with a request, I have significantly meliorate options for them when I take a step back and await at the request from several different angles. This also gets the creative juices flowing and allows me to come up with multiple options that my clients can choose from. I believe that this sets me higher up like individuals in my field who lack the perspective or 'drive' to think outside the box and provide more one way to cross the stop line."

ten. Accountability

Simply like collaboration, kids in the arts learn they are accountable for their contributions to the group and to their individual artmaking. Mistakes are a part of life, and learning to take them, fix them, and move on will serve students well every bit they grow older.

Here'southward what my student, Lexi Forest, Form of 2009 had to say:

"I currently live in Brooklyn, NY and piece of work in Soho every bit an Industrial Designer for a retail visitor. We exercise pop-up stores, store displays, and promo accessories for brands around the world. I'm creative, but as well highly ambitious. I can actually ascribe this independence to my high schoolhouse art classes. When I was in loftier schoolhouse, I was confused and felt pressured to pick what I needed to exercise the rest of my life manner too early. Then I started taking fine art classes, and I had an outlet for my frustrations that I eventually figured out was my passion. It opened a whole new world to me that I never knew existed, and led me on a path of creativity and worldly-preparedness. I accept creative influences and insights on past designers and artists that have helped shape my personal manner to the designer I am today."

These are a few "real-world" means the arts impact our students' lives.

The arts affair, peradventure now more than e'er. I retrieve my student, Brandon Park, Grade of 2015 said it best when he talked nearly the importance of a strong foundation:

"I am a senior at Parsons School for Design in New York. I have interned at companies and agencies like Viacom (Times Square), MTV (Times Foursquare), and 26FIVE (Flatiron). Even now, I nevertheless get freelance job offers. Correct now I program on interning once more during the bound of 2019.

How have high school art classes helped me? Foundation, foundation, foundation. I cannot stress enough how important foundation is for any striving art and blueprint student. You would be surprised how many students misunderstand the importance behind knowing the basics as they breeze by information technology thinking that they're going to exist fine in the long run, when in the end they tend to forget the nearly simple techniques. My experience during my fine art journeying in high school was the commencement step to becoming a professional creative person and designer. Knowing the 'basics-of-the-basics' can exponentially help with every project that y'all start with and holding tight to the foundations of art is a reminder to consider the importance of the foundations for life!"

Why do you lot think art class is important?

How are your past students using fine art in their lives today?

Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Fine art of Education University (AOEU) or its bookish offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most frequently talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.

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Source: https://theartofeducation.edu/2019/03/14/10-real-world-ways-art-class-can-impact-your-life/

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