Drawing lessons can be enriched by creating original coloring books in elementary school art classes. (DS)

Considers the ways in which the processes involved in learning to read are inherent in art and music experiences; discusses visual arts activities as catalysts for vocabulary development, sensory control, and close observation; and provides an overview of such music activities as folk singing as motivaters for reading. (JL)

Australian children from an urban area near Sydney used the creative arts to promote harmony among their diverse cultures including sizable immigrant populations from the Middle East, Asia, and other traditions. The project enabled children to develop leadership and artistic skills, and examine how their backgrounds influence their view of the…

Songs provide easy access to other cultures. Songs generate instinctive responses to the mood and rhythm in music, even if the meaning is initially unknown. To stimulate curiosity about other cultures, the author had her third and fourth grade students listen to a recording of a Navajo and a Franco-Canadian song and then create a bas-relief clay…

A study investigated the effects of art expression on self-concept of low-reading first-grade students. Subjects, five low-readers and five on- or above-grade-level first graders from central Virginia, were pretested for self-concept, instructed in a two-week art-book making intervention, and posttested with the same instrument. Results indicated…

A monthly exchange of tips, projects, ideas and resources. (Editor)

Provides a guide to a first-grade teacher's methods of teaching art appreciation. She began a weekly art appreciation study integrated across the curriculum that heightened students' awareness and critical-thinking skills and enhanced their creativity by allowing them to view and respond to art and then create their own. (SM)

Community is an essential aspect of the Schools for Thought program, an educational reform project designed to bring educational technology to many public school classrooms. The classroom community is enriched when experts from the surrounding community visit to share knowledge and expertise. Art experiences may help students engage more deeply in…

This book provides scores of activities using inexpensive manila file folders. Designed for children in the elementary grades, each chapter proceeds from simple material to more advanced work. Selected subjects are intended to enhance the following curriculum studies and promote development in: (1) art and visual-motor activities; (2) reading; (3)…

Research has revealed that art is an important but neglected part of every child's educational experience. To help alleviate this neglect, a practicum was conducted to plan, implement, and evaluate an art curriculum for a selected group of first-grade children. Twenty children participated in a 4-month program that focused on awareness of body…

Through content analysis of interviews based on a class art activity, a study of 15 first-graders investigated children's perceptions of a good story. The story was based on children's interpretation of artwork they had created. Through the use of content analysis, three major themes of the children's stories were identified: (1) animals as main…

This paper describes the creative activity of two first graders and identifies moments of creative activity that reflect the integration of strands of experience. Children's and adults' creativity are compared. Topics include: (1) the role of novelty in art; (2) the creative act as an interaction of individual, product, and culture; and (3) the…

The second session of a proposed 3-year annual summer Cultural and Creative Arts Program was held in 6 selected Monongalia County, West Virginia, schools for first- through sixth-grade pupils. Objectives were to emphasize the distinctive cultural character of Appalachia and to emphasize exploration and experimentation rather than mastery of formal…

This bulletin has been prepared to help teachers and parents understand the contribution of creative expression in the all-around development of children. In order to achieve balance among the various learning activities, a school program needs to give appropriate emphasis to the creative arts. Because all the arts are closely related, a broader,…