Art Education For Your Children And Develop Their Talent

Most parents know that giving a child crayons and a coloring book is great way to occupy a kid for a few hours. What many do not know is what an important role art plays in a child's development. In recent years a multitude of studies have been made available that link art education to a variety of important aspects of childhood learning. Art education has been linked to increased creativity, development of problem solving skills and better communication skills just to start. The skills that can be developed through art education are skills that last a lifetime and can benefit a child into adulthood regardless of what career path that child may choose. Understanding the importance of art education will allow this often undervalued development tool gain momentum in main stream education programs.

The first thing that comes to mind for most people when thinking about the relevance of art is the development of creativity. Creativity is an important skill that can be nurtured though art education for children of all ages. Despite popular belief, creativity is relevant to more than just a child's artistic ability. A creative child will use that skill in all areas of life from problem solving to communication. All of which is needed in everyday learning situations from math and science to reading. The goal of education is to prepare children for their adult life, creativity and problem solving skills are a valuable asset at all points in a person's life. Many people tend to think that only artists need to be creative but what about the child who is able to come up with a creative solution to resolve a math or science question. It is the child who can resolve problems through reasoning as oppose to memorization that excels in the school setting. These same skills come in handy later on in life when that child finally enters the workforce.

Communication skills are also a valuable asset when it comes to success in school and then later success in the workforce. Art can be used as a method to help children develop better communication skills. Everyone has seen young children draw pictures of their house and family members. These types of drawings allow a child to express certain ideas that may be difficult to express through language. Having a child talk about the pictures they draw then serves as a tool to help develop those necessary language skills. As a child gets older art can be used to express the complex emotions that develop throughout childhood. Communication skills are vital to success in a school setting and increasing a child's ability to communicate will enrich a child's life well into the future.

An increase in ability in the areas of problem solving skills, creativity and communication directly translates to better learning in all areas of education. As more people begin to understand the relationship between art and learning hopefully the number of art related programs in schools will increase. There tends to be more focus on learning the skills associated with reading, writing, math and science. Increasing awareness about the role art education plays in developing these skills is a step in the right direction. This will help society create an education program that provides the best learning environment for our children and will in turn create more productive individuals later in life.

There are a large number of students who have difficulty learning material using traditional teaching methods. Learning disabilities vary from mild forms such as attention deficit disorder to more severe disabilities like autism and mental retardation. Incorporating art into the curriculum of students with learning disabilities can be a useful tool. Students with disabilities are not students who are incapable of learning but instead are students who may need material presented to them using alternative methods. Methods that incorporate art can be very successful for these children.

Many students with disabilities are separated from regular students for either part of all of the school day. These students spend a great deal of time focusing on remedial skills and learning new skills to help them catch up with the rest of the class. For students with learning disabilities the knowledge that they are not able to function at the same level as other students can be very discouraging. Introducing these students to art classes can offer them the opportunity to do something creative where success is not measured by the same standards as in regular academics. The feeling of succeeding at something can provide these students with self-worth and confidence that can carry over into other areas of study. Allowing children to be involved with art related activities also encourages creativity, problem solving skills, motor skills and other skills that are useful in all areas of academics like math, science and language.

Art lessons can be combined with traditional lessons and used as a teaching tool for these students. Children that have difficulty with verbal expression will often have more success by expressing themselves through art. Practicing expression through art may translate to better overall communication skills. Teaching math and science lessons that are hands on art based lessons also tend to hold a student's interest more than traditional lecture lessons. Sometimes just holding a student's attention is half the battle especially for students with attention deficit disorder. Activities that encourage drawing and painting can help students learn about shapes, contrast and spatial relationships. Teachers can implement lessons that use these art activities to teach basic math skills like geometry and various other math techniques. Another interesting way to teach history involves having students create plays that focus on historical events. This method can help students internalize the material as oppose to just memorizing facts from a textbook.

The Field Of Early Childhood Education Offers Many Career Options

Parents who are thinking of enrolling their children in an early childhood education may encounter a lot of issues regarding the appropriateness. There is an on-going debate with regards to sending children to school before they even reach 5 years old. Some people believe that kids are better off playing and enjoying their childhood, while others think that children need to be taught early on. Both of these may be due to the fact that they just want their children to enjoy, while others simply want to take advantage of the intelligence they possess during this stage.

The field of early childhood education offers many career options. You can choose one that interests you. Many educational institutions offer courses in early childhood education. One also has the option to do these courses online. Listed below are some of the career options in the field of early childhood education.

Child Daycare Worker
Pursuing a high school diploma in early childhood education will help you to take up the job of a day care worker. Here you will get a chance to interact with little babies and toddlers. You can start your own daycare center or apply at a center run by some other person. Day care centers do not need actual teaching skills. Here, you need to be creative and innovative to teach children basic skills through fun games and activities. This is quite a flexible job, where you can work either part-time or full-time.

Preschool Teacher
Preschool teachers have the responsibility of teaching kids ranging from 2 years till the age they are ready to join kindergarten. This is the age when young children start exploring their surroundings and have numerous queries in their mind. This job would be great if you have the patience and interest to be in the company of young children. An associate degree or a bachelor's degree in early childhood education will be beneficial to become a preschool teacher. In these courses, you will have to study about child development and child psychology. You will also be taught skills and methods of teaching children basic concepts, like, the alphabets, colors, numbers, etc. Teaching in an early childhood education center primarily involves the use of educational and fun games and activities and teaching through play. The preschool teacher is also responsible for enhancing the social skills of little children and developing self-confidence and self worth in them.

Kindergarten or Elementary School teacher
Kindergarten and elementary school teachers have the responsibility of the academic education of children. At this stage, children have to be taught to read and write and also be exposed to variety of subjects like maths, science, social studies, etc. This is a preparatory stage before high school, so the focus is on teaching basic concepts and skills related to various subjects. It is necessary to have a bachelor's degree to teach at this level. This course helps the trainee teachers to develop skills and expertise to teach difficult concepts to children and also to deal with them in the classroom situation. In a class, there will be children of different capabilities, family backgrounds etc. Sometimes there may even be children who have certain limitations or difficulties. A good teacher should have the ability to attend to the needs of every child.

Education Administrator
Administrators are needed in every educational institution, be it a school or a child day care center. The duty of the educational administrator is to supervise the everyday activities of the school. They are responsible for the smooth functioning of the school and have to chalk out the curriculum, make budgets and monitor the working of the teachers and other staff members. It is a full-time job and the qualification required to become an educational administrator is a Master's Degree or a PhD.

Postsecondary teacher
A post secondary teacher is a person who has a master's degree and teaches children at the high school level. Postsecondary teachers can also take up the job of teaching student trainees who are pursuing bachelor or associate degree courses in early childhood education.

The field of early childhood education is a fast growing one with a plethora of career opportunities. Salaries would depend on the career path you have chosen in this field. But, along with the monetary gain, the best thing about the field of early childhood education is the opportunity to shape and mold the personalities of young children.

Child Education Tips

One of the most important things for any child is a good education from an early age. They need to be taught social skills and learn to interact with their contemporaries and ideally teaching should begin in the home or a child education scheme - before the child starts education.

The Best Start in Life.

To give your child the best possible start in life it is probably best to combine a stimulating home environment with an education scheme. In the home the child gets your individual one on one attention. In the right scheme your child will learn to interact with their peers and work as part of a team in a socially acceptable way and they will develop their communication skills.

Child Education Schemes.

From the age of two a child can join one of the many schemes devoted to child development. Most of these schemes combine physical games and exercise with language skills and pre-reading activities.

For two- to five-year-olds they offer a mixture of free play and structured games with the emphasis on fun. Games are non-competitive and focus on building the child's confidence - a great advantage when they start school or pre-school.

For six- to twelve-year-olds there are schemes that offer lots of different games and exercise. Exercises are disguised as games so the children are having fun while getting physically fit. Jumping rope and playing hula hoop are excellent physical exercise as well as being great fun. The professional staff are all fully trained in health and safety and you need have no fear for your child's well-being.

In The Home.

Of course parents have a large part to play in their child's education. In the home it is important to play with the child, talk to them a lot and read to them to develop their language skills. Spending time with your child reciting nursery rhymes, pointing to pictures and letters in board books or playing with alphabet blocks will all help your child to start reading at an early age.

You will be surprised to find that your child will soon recognise the covers of their favourite books and will even pretend to be reading them using the words that they remember from your story telling sessions. It is a wonderful feeling when a child recognizes their first letter or word.

Providing colored crayons and paper or coloring books will help your child develop their writing and drawing skills. At first a child will just scribble but they will soon start to try and draw objects around them or copy letters.

When Teaching Children at Home

Consistency is important, especially for very young children, as it helps to reinforce what they have already learned, as well as avoiding confusion when new teaching methods are introduced. If you start by using music and rhyming songs to teach things like numbers, days of the week and colours, stick to that method when it comes to teaching more advanced knowledge such as multiplication tables.

Teaching is a skill, which is why teachers have to be trained for many years before they are equipped to handle a class full of enquiring minds. Parents may only have one, two or perhaps three young children to deal with, but many of the skills required to impart knowledge to youngsters are the same whether you are teaching just one child or 30.

In order that parents can also be effective teachers, there are three basic rules that all Mums and Dads should follow when it comes to educating children in the home, be consistent; be positive; and have fun. Remember these three key steps and you will soon notice that your child is picking up knowledge and skills from home as well as from school.

Kids will find it much easier to pick up potentially difficult concepts if they are already used to the methods which are being used to teach them; and thanks to the internet there are no shortage of educational resources if you are looking for inspiration ans ideas. After all, many teachers use the same methods year after year, with different classes, so there’s no reason why parents shouldn’t do the same.

Using fun methods like music and games is a great way to keep children engaged and interested in what you are doing – and they may not even realise they are learning at all if you make it lots of fun. Even just spending time with your child, doing something which they enjoy, can be educational too. You can improve their verbal communication skills by talking to them and encouraging them to ask and answer questions, while spending quality time together will also improve your relationship. Many home “lessons” happen because the child has done something that they shouldn’t and the parent has to explain or show the youngster why it was wrong. Lessons which are reinforced by negativity will not be learned as effectively as those which are taught in a positive way; rather than shouting at the child or punishing them, persuade them to think about why what they have done in not acceptable.

As well as creating a better relationship between child and parent, this educational method is much more effective than old-fashioned lectures and punishments.