Visual arts
Visual arts can be both fun and therapeutic for children. The diverse materials and techniques provide opportunities for sensory stimulation and personal expression. Older children may be interested in artists and art galleries within their community.
Many early childhood educators don't consider themselves to be artistic. If this sounds like you, remember that the process is more important than the final product. There are more styles of art than photorealism and educators can get messy, experiment and learn alongside children.
The benefits of visual arts
The benefits of visual arts include:
- creativity
- fine motor development
- imagination
- mental health and wellbeing
- self-expression.
EYLF learning outcomes
Visual arts aligns with the Early Years Learning Framework as it:
- supports physical learning (3.2)
- sparks curiosity, creativity, enthusiasm and imagination (4.1)
- provokes confidence, commitment and persistence (4.1)
- involves transfering and adapting learning from one context to another (4.3)
- involves materials (4.4)
- supports children to express their ideas and make meaning (5.3).
Learning opportunities
Explore types of visual arts
Children can learn about different types of visual arts:
- collage
- drawing
- mosaic
- painting
- printing
- sculpture.
Learning experiences
Be inspired by First Nations art techniques
Introduce children to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, including the materials and techniques they use. Encourage children to experiment with these themselves.
Tjanpi artists are contemporary fibre artists. They create baskets and sculptures from native grasses, seeds, and emu feathers. What can your children make from native grasses?
Albert Namatjira is highly acclaimed for his watercolour scenes of Australian landscapes. What landscapes can your children paint using watercolours?
Lily Kelly Napangardi uses fine dots to paint sandhills using high-contrast tones and minimal colours. Can your children paint their environment using only black and white dots?
Create animal scale art
Draw an animal and put scales on its body in an overlapping pattern.
Cut paper towel rolls in half lengthwise to create a semicircle shape. Dip the end in paint to make animal scale prints.
Tear up pieces of paper into the shape of scales. Search for packaging that looks like scales, like bubble wrap. Draw tiny scales with a sharp pencil or fine-tip pen.
Collect tiny leaves from your garden. Do they look like scales?