Is Art Important to Young Children?
Art gives children a chance to enhance, develop and nurture their innate creativity. As a child explores art media, there are millions of synapses connecting and firing, which leads to the formation of well-rounded personalities, good attachment, self-esteem and better mental health. When they feel good about who they are, then they tend to have better mental health, and they also tend to feel better about the others around them. When it comes to art experiences with infants and toddlers, it’s important to remember that the process of allowing them to manipulate and have an effect on the raw material is so much more important than the final product. Respecting the children’s art and creativity is so much more important.
With art, the goal is to make it possible for children to explore and experiment freely with a wide variety of materials in a safe way.
Try this simple art activity ‘Making Salt dough’ using easy to find ingredients at home
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup salt
- 1 cup water
Measure 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of salt and mix them together in a bowl. Pour out 1 cup of water and mix it into the salt dough mix, a little bit at a time. If it feels wet or sticky to the touch, add a bit more flour until you can form a dough that holds its shape but doesn’t stick to your fingers. Roll out the dough on a floured surface using a rolling pin until it’s 1cm thick