Art & Your Four-year Old

Posted by: Sharmila Rajah

Just like any four-year old, Ayanna loves art - be it painting, drawing or making music. She spends a considerable amount of her time at home making craft and exploring her skills at painting. We love making greeting cards, engaging in free-hand painting, finger painting, colouring with crayons, and chalk. There's an adequate amount of time dedicated to art and craft at her school each week. It's a fun way of learning.

Ayanna's art

The benefits of art (according to the New York Center for Art Education):

-    Children should be exposed to art as their cognitive skills mature so the brain's right and left hemispheres can develop separately and in tandem to achieve full potential.

-    Children learn to think creatively and with an open mind when engaged in art.

-    They learn to observe and describe, analyze and interpret.

-    They learn to express their feelings, with or without words.

-    Children practice problem-solving skills, critical-thinking skills and language, while exposed to the different forms of art.

-    They're exposed to the understanding that there's no one straight answer but multiple points of view.

-    Art is a great window into the world and its diverse cultures.

-    Art builds confidence - there's no one right way to make art.

What are some of the art projects you do with your kids at home?