Fine Arts in the Elementary Classroom Kylene Pace

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Fine Arts Are Important  Reduces student dropout  Raises school attendance  Develops better team players  Fosters a love for learning  Improves greater school dignity  Enhances student creativity  Produces self-esteem  Produces motivation  Increases aesthetic awareness  Provides cultural exposure  Improves emotional expression  Increases appreciation of diversity WHY?

Including Fine Arts in the Classroom  Play instrumental music in the background during silent working, or an upbeat song when they enter the class.  Sketching models of things they are learning or sketching the meaning of vocabulary words.  Have students write and illustrate their own stories.  Act out different concepts you are learning.  Put on a class play.  Write a class song.  Use songs to teach concepts.  Make shakers using paper and rice or beans.  Provide art projects that go along with the concepts you are teaching.

Fine Arts programs are being cut. $ $ $ Budgets are being cut across the board, so in many cases there simply isn’t enough money in the school’s limited budgets to fund art programs. NCLB The No Child Left Behind Act cuts budgets when students don’t meet set standards. In consequence, the areas that students are tested on take the highest priority in all cases, including the budget. CUTS The main reason for cuts is that under the No Child Left Behind Act, students aren’t tested in Fine Arts. This makes it a lot easier to justify cutting programs like art and music. Why ? Clip

Why Do Fine Arts Excel In Utah? The Curriculum standards set for the state of Utah in Fine Arts are very subject specific. They are broken down into dance, music, theatre and visual arts. In comparison, the curriculum standards for Fine Arts in Oregon for the same grade level were condensed into a brief overview for the entire subject and were explained in one short paragraph.

View Arts Education Clip Thoughts & Opinions 1.Fine Arts are beneficial and important to education. 1.Funding and lack of accountability will continue to reduce emphasis on Fine Arts education 1.Our challenge as teachers is to be proactive and creative in incorporating Fine Arts into our lessons plans as much as possible.

Beveridge T. No Child Left Behind and Fine Arts Classes. Arts Education Policy Review [serial online]. January 2010;111(1):4-7. Available from: Education F. Bryant, B. (2001). The importance of fine arts education. Retrieved from McLary, R. (2011). Teaching tip: Incorporate the arts. Retrieved from (2007). Elementary core curriculum. Retrieved from Utah State Office of Education website: References