It is evident that the arts provide and enhance the skills necessary for a successful life. In education, the arts have been disregarded as a non-important subject that provides no foreseeable benefit. Although exactly the opposite should be true. Studies have shown that involvement in the arts has lead to better development, improved academics and to offer more opportunities in the future. By allowing the arts to be made part of the common core, children and young adults will be able to flourish both early on and in their later life.

The use of the phrase “The Arts” is an umbrella term under which falls many different forms and categories. The two most predominant are performing and visual. Both forms hold large amounts of influence in childhood development, as well as academics.

Performing arts can be just about anything that has to do with performance, although most people consider them to be either music, theater, dance or a combination of the three. These arts tend to dominate the social skill set, as it enhances one's ability to communicate with and understand others. An unknown fact is that 74 percent of people suffer from speech anxiety, and the only way to get over a condition like that is to practice. Not so coincidentally, performing arts are notoriously famous for bringing teens and young children out of their shells. It is also proven to show improvement in comprehensive reading and writing courses at any grade level, considering that theater has been around for many years and been written in many languages. Music is also used in the form of silly songs for children to help them learn many different materials including math and science.

There are several classifications of visual art: fine arts (drawing, painting, sculpture, etc.), contemporary art (collages, photography, animation, etc) and decorative arts (ceramics, mosaic, tapestry, etc). The expansiveness of visual arts allows it to apply in several subject areas including math, science and even reading. Teachers use many of these different mediums in order to assist the student in understanding broad, or even specific topics being covered in the classroom.

There is nothing that makes us more human than our ability to be creative. Creativity is at the foundation of nature. It leads to curiosity, which transforms into ideas and eventually becomes change. At an early age, children should be allowed to be creative in order for them to learn and gain the understanding necessary for future comprehension. This creativity comes in the forms of performing and visual art.

Many times we have seen parents or have been told by our own parents how special we are, and how anything we believe in is possible if we wish hard enough. It is because of these encouragements that imagination is able to thrive. At young age, children may not particularly participate in performances like recitals or plays, but every parent has most likely experienced being serenaded by a dollar store kazoo, played tea party or cops and robbers or watched the child spin around in endless circles. It is in these adolescent years when many basic motor functions are formed and developed. By encouraging these activities the child becomes more coordinated and is more likely to pursue performing arts as a hobby or career.

Typically, the visual art of young children is egocentric. When a child draws or paints, it is an expression of themselves and how they think. “Art activities not only reflect a child’s inner self: they help to form it.” says W. Lambert Brittain, author of Creativity, Art, and the Young Child. By promoting the desire in children to create, art soon becomes a medium for personal development. No two children are alike, and each expresses themselves in a different way. By encouraging the child you are also building their self-confidence and individuality, but by discouraging them you could cripple their motive to be creative. Parents can influence the child’s motivation in a positive way by complimenting the work, displaying it somewhere, experimenting with different mediums and encouraging the child to share their work with extended friends and family members.

Art programs are an integral part of both development and education. In schools where art education was offered, studies show that students were more involved with school activities, had lower dropout rates and did better in common core subjects. By eliminating art programs from schools, the public is doing its students a disservice. Although in 2000 a study showed no direct link between art education and improved proficiency in other subjects. Instead, it believed that the benefits gained from art education such as visual analysis skills, creativity, critical thinking and being able to learn from mistakes should be reason enough to support art education. The majority of studies, however, do show significant links between the arts and improvement in other subjects.

In almost every literature class, there will be at least one play. Typically students in high school will cover Shakespearean works like "Romeo and Juliet" or "Hamlet." These works can prove especially difficult for students who are not literately adept. The main objective in theater is learning how to interpret lines and the emotions behind them, often by relating them to more commonly said phrases. This, in turn, allows a student to grasp the concept of the play, its characters and the setting. Nursery rhymes and silly songs are also a popular tool in education because they can help with memorization in a variety of subjects.

Visual arts come in so many different forms that it can be used in several subjects as a learning tool. When beginning geometry, children will often be given tessellation tiles in order to learn about how certain shapes can be broken down into smaller, simpler ones. That on its own is a form of art, but students also learn this skill from drawing, starting with basic shapes and turning them into more complicated ones until a picture is formed. Collages are often used in English classes to pick out and understand the significant points, settings and characteristics in the story. Learning is also derived from the experimentation that art forms allow and being able to pick apart the differences. Students are able to explore in-depth topics while remaining in a relaxed, stress-free environment.

There is an immense number of art-related scholarships for those who are looking for degrees in any subject. One does not have to specifically major in any form of art in order to qualify, some might only require that you show interest in the arts. Many colleges and universities with a strong performing arts department will require you to audition in order to participate in the program. Auditions usually consist of two contrasting monologues, a musical piece, a choreographed routine or a combination depending on what your intended major is. Depending on how strong your audition is you can gain several different kinds of scholarships. If you intend to major in a visual art you will need to prepare a portfolio of your completed works. You can gain scholarships similar to the ones for the performing arts.

Those involved in the performing arts can move on to pursue careers in varying fields. Many become music or theater instructors, some even become famous in their respective talent. Visual artists can continue on to become graphic designers, architects, animators, and even engineers. Music or Art Therapy is also a new field that has been gaining popularity in recent years involving the arts. and a few colleges have begun to offer it as a specific degree.

The arts are an integral part of development, and should continue to have a presence in education. A world without artists would feel empty. Because creativity and curiosity are the foundation on which we build everything, including ourselves. To quote Pablo Picasso “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”

http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/music-arts/the-importance-of-art-in-child-development/

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/04/arts/design/04stud.html?_r=0