Expressive Art sessions can relate to the 4 purposes.

Hello Bloggers,

I hope you have all enjoyed the past weeks of university as we are now heading to an end of second year. I hope blogging has been as relevant, interesting and as joyful for you as it has been for me. This last blog will discuss how areas within expressive art could relate to the four purposes of the curriculum (Donaldson, 2015).

The Donaldson’s report, ‘Successful Futures’ has four main purposes for the curriculum, which is designed to help and support all children and young people in primary education. Young people’s experience in the Expressive arts Area of Learning and Experience can relate to all of the purposes of the curriculum (Donaldson, 2015).  

1. Ambitious, capable learners, who are ready to learn throughout their lives.

Research shows how children learn better through the use of music (Arts, 2018). An example of this is seen in children who learn about the alphabet and sometimes numbers through the use of song and rhythm (Hill, 2011). In placement children were learning about the different seasons through song, which was in Welsh. They had the opportunity to add their own Welsh words and some of the children had recorders, triangles and drums to join in. The children were learning through play, and the excitement and enthusiasm was shown throughout the class. The children were very determined to learn some more Welsh phrases and were very ambitious to succeed. By the end of my time in placement many of the children excelled in the Welsh language through encouragement and support as they were given the opportunity to be capable learners. They were encouraged to explore new and challenging areas of experience and strived to improve their performance (Donaldson, 2015).

2. Enterprising, creative contributors, who are ready to play a full part in life and work

Through placement I experienced children becoming creative together through art and design. In pairs children had the opportunity to capture movements, where they used art to cut out photo frames to capture moving subjects in photographs. One of the children would take the picture while the other would hold the frame. A sense of creativity was seen as the children were using different angles to capture the pictures. The children were working together on a class project to display the importance of ‘movement’ as a theme. Kutnick and Thomas (1990) expressed the importance of children working together in pairs as they perform significantly better in schools than they would if they worked by themselves, this is due to a helping hand from one another and the sense of joy while learning together. Nevertheless, it is evident that some children do prefer to work on their own as they become distracted by others. Yet, research shows how children who do collaboratively work together achieve better in the future (Barron, 2000). Once the photographs were taken they were uploaded on a computer where the children had the opportunity to gain digital skills by changing colour, brightness, tone and different effects overall. By having the opportunity to experiment children seemed to be more engaged and motivated to work harder and set out goals for each another (Matterson, 2014). The children developed their creativity in a range of forms of expression, and provided rich contexts and challenges within which they worked collaboratively (Donaldson, 2015).

3. Ethical, informed citizens, who are ready to be citizens of Wales and the world

Through drama children and young people are able to explore different cultures, learn about society and the world around them through the use of performing and acting (Brooke and Busby, 2017). By having the opportunity to explore real and imaginary situations helps learners understand and share their world. Children and young people have the freedom to be creative with their scripts, choose their voice, expression and movement in the play which allows children to follow their own direction. As Freire (1996) notes, how allowing a child to take parts in projects which have an impact on their real life situation, or allowing them to take direction and the lead will impact on confidence and self-esteem, which will actively foster creative learning and a willingness to learn. Through drama a demonstration of sensitivity, precision and depth is portrayed in characters, conveying relationships and situations in having the opportunity to lead negotiation and decision making (Miccoli, 2003). Children learn valuable and relevant skills for day to day life through the use of expressive arts. Arts (2018) a foundation on the importance of music, mentions how music can be added to add tension and change the atmosphere in drama, also it can represent a culture as music has a vast importance in many countries. McIntyre(2012)  agrees with this statement by commenting on how music is a form of art which is represented around the world. This allows children to understand their own culture and identify with other places, through drama children and young people can also explore complex and difficult issues through emotion (Donaldson, 2015).

4. Healthy, confident individuals, who are ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society.   

Children and young people are able to learn a lot through dance, as they have the rich opportunities to be creative and to experience inspiration and enjoyment (Nielsen, 2012). Through dance, children are able to keep fit and healthy through physical activity and through creating and performing a dance sequence. Ket (2018) mentions the simple nature seen through movement, highlighting how ideas, thoughts and feelings are expressed through the movement of dance. Children’s knowledge and understanding are further developed as their ability to engage with dance through performing in front of others is developed, which positively increases confidence and their well-being. Theatre arts technology could be added to add drama and excitement to performances. However, funding is not always available for the schools. NGA (2015) council who provides dance education in primary schools agrees with this statement, yet highlights how the community and the school could work together to raise money through fundraising events to provide children with these opportunities to keep fit and feel confident, as they gain enjoyment and personal satisfaction from creative expression (Donaldson, 2015). Also, the Donaldson’s report notes how it will provide opportunities for experiences such as visits to theatres and galleries or even, bringing artists and musicians into the classroom (Donladson, 2015). This will engage and interest children to join in and to take part.  

Through Expressive arts children and young people have the opportunity to develop a creative appreciation and talent. They are able to learn through art which will overall increased skills, confidence and their imagination when performing.

                         

An experience into teaching a group of children about the Spring Equinox. We used a variety of creative resources which kept the children engaged and motivated. I can discuss this activity in more detail through the comments.

Reference List

ARTS (2018) Music Matters. Washington: NAMM Foundation.

Barron, B. (2000) 'Achieving Coordination in Collaborative Problem-Solving Groups', Journal of the Learning Sciences, 9(4), pp. 403-436.

Brooke, C. and Busby, S. (2017) 'All together now', Executive Summary, 20(3) pp.413-416

Donaldson, G. (2015) Successful futures: Independent review of curriculum and assessment arrangements in Wales. Available at file:///C:/Users/Acer/Downloads/Donaldson%20Report%20-%20Successful%20Futures%20-%20Independent%20Review%20of%20Curriculum%20and%20Assessment%20Arrangements%20in%20Wales%20(5).pdf  (Accessed 14 April 2018)

Freire, P. (1996) Pedagogy of the oppressed. Penguin. London.

Hill, A. (2010) 'Singing to children help development of language skills', The Guardian, 09 May, p.2

Ket (2018) Movement and Dance . Available at: https://www.ket.org/education/resources/movement-and-dance/ (Accessed: 15 April 2018).

Kutnick, P. and Thomas, M. (1990) ‘Dyadic pairings for the enhancement of cognitive development in the school curriculum’, British Educational Research Journal, 16(4), pp. 1-26.

Matterson, C. (2014) Experiments in Engagement. Available at: https://www.raeng.org.uk/RAE/media/Grant-applications-and-guidelines/Experiments-in-engagement-summary.pdf (Accessed: 16 April 2018).

McIntyre, K. (2012) Music Appreciation. Texas: The Fine Art Department.

Miccoli, L. (2003) 'English through drama', ELT Journal, 57(2), pp. 122-129.

NGA (2015) Dance Education. Available at: https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/sites/default/files/download-file/ACE172%20Dance%20Education%20for%20Governors%20and%20Trustees%20-%20WEB_0.pdf (Accessed: 16 April 2018).

Nielsen, C. (2012) Young people’s embodied voices: Experiences and learning in dance education practices across the world . Available at: https://ausdance.org.au/uploads/content/publications/2012-global-summit/dance-learning-rp/young-peoples-embodied-voices-experiences-and-learning-in-dance-education-practices.pdf (Accessed: 14 April 2018).