Visual thinking
Pictures encourage us to think about and understand the
world visually, instead of only thinking about things in
terms of what name they are called and their function.
Autonomy.
A child’s picture is his or her own. It has worth in its own
right, without having to measured or judged by others as
right or wrong. The child has the authority to say what
the picture is of, or what it communicates, therefore
building up the child’s confidence and self-esteem.
We must not forget that there are many general
benefits of making art. These include a sense of achievement and pride
in learning a skill, improving concentration, patience, motor skill and
hand-eye coordination, social skills in group art projects, and of course
the relaxation and fun that goes hand in hand with making pictures
THE BENEFITS OF ART FOR
CHILDREN
So whether you are a parent, teacher or a child, the message is
simple – art is good for you!
People have been making pictures since prehistoric times. Indeed, the earliest forms of
representational pictures we have remaining
today are cave paintings dating as far back as
40,000 BC. Clearly our ancestors found picturemaking a worthwhile activity, which has continued
and extended throughout our history to create the
pictorial world we live in today……..
If you would like to know more about children’s making and
understanding of pictures the following book may be of interest to you. It
is suitable for students, teachers, parents, practitioners, artists, and
educators in this fascinating field of children’s activity - Jolley, R.P.
(2010). Children and Pictures: drawing and understanding. WileyBlackwell.
Our thanks go to Dr Richard Jolley for this article.
Dr. Richard Jolley,
Senior Lecturer in Child Psychology
Staffordshire University (Email: [email protected])
From the ‘serious’ art that is displayed in art galleries to pictures found
on the packaging that advertise and inform us of the products we buy,
there is an abundant array of pictures that influence our lives. Pictures
are found in most books, magazines, newspapers and comics serving a
variety of purposes that include their aesthetic communication, to
illustrate the accompanying text, to express moods and ideas, and even
to make us laugh. Through the creation of photography the ability to
capture the visual likeness of our world is no longer restricted to some
artists, but available to all who have access to a camera. Realism in
pictures has been extended through the invention of ‘moving’ pictures in
film, where we can see on large cinema screens and television sets the
finite incremental movements ingrained in real-life events or in animated
stories.
Although our pictorial world is created by relatively few adults (e.g.,
artists, illustrators, cartoonists, photographers, film makers), it is
childhood that represents the prolific period of picture-making. As
children, we create a massive collection of pictures, particularly
paintings and drawings. But what are the benefits of children engaging
in art, both in terms of their own creations and appreciation of pictures
made by others? Art educators and child psychologists have claimed
that there are many and varied benefits, which can be summarised as
follows:
Imagination and Creativity.
Children can take their experiences of the world and transform these by
making new connections and relationships through
their inventive minds. Their knowledge, memories
and fantasies all feed their imagination, and art
allows children to explore, build on and record their
own creative and imaginative ideas.
Expression.
Making pictures allow children to express their
feelings and ideas, both as a means of selfexpression and to communicate to others. These
may include reliving a happy event they recently
experienced (e.g., a birthday party or a day out),
or drawing out some sad feelings as a therapeutic
exercise. In addition, older children may use pictures for conceptual
purposes, expressing their concerns and ideas.
Observational skills.
Making pictures helps children observe more
closely the subject matter from the real-world
scene they are drawing from, and therefore make
them more observant of the details in world
around them. Together with visual thinking,
developing observational skills through picture
making facilitates the child’s visual sensitivity of the world.
Problem solving/ analytical skills.
Pictures enable children to explore and test out
ideas, while making decisions on how they
choose to depict them. For instance, children will
learn problem solving skills as they grapple with
trying to create on a two-dimensional page a
three-dimensional scene from the world. With
practice children learn that through concentration
and persistence they can produce more successful pictures of what they
are trying to achieve.