Literacy is one of the most important areas of development. Several pieces of research examine the positive impact of the arts on children's literacy development. However, most of them focus on specific literacy skills and not in providing a holistic examination of literacy. Also, they adapt a structured methodology, with pre-decided lesson plans, which contradicts the liberal character of the arts. Having this in mind along with the importance of literacy as an area of learning, this research project was designed with the purpose of examining the effects of the arts on children's holistic literacy development in the early years settings through a child-led approach. The 'Play and Learn through the Arts' (PLA) programme was used for a school year in a case study with 5--6-year-old children in Greece. The outcomes were measured using a mix-method approach and showed the positive contribution of PLA in children's literacy development.