With a background in both Education and Performing Arts, Megan speaks about the importance of the Arts in support of a student’s health and well-being.
There are many conflicting concepts that are portrayed about childhood, though it is not in distrust that overall measures of mental health appear to signify that it is a challenging phase of life. A result of students facing distress or dysfunction is that individuals then go on to face an educational drawback in terms of attainment and achievement.
“Emotions are one of the most salient aspects of our experiences and it is not surprising that the study of emotion has captured the attention of developmental researchers of nearly all theoretical persuasions”. There are many views that branch the study of emotion but the key theory guiding this is the functionalist approach; emotions stimulate an individual to act a certain way in order to reach a certain goal. This looks at the relationship between emotions and actions.
A student's learning is more often than not deskbound, meaning that effective activity is desirable even more than before in relation to connecting to not only a child’s creative side but their emotional side. The Arts provide a holistic learning experience for each student individually and should therefore hold a noticeable position within students learning. When the COVID-19 pandemic was brought to the lives of everyone across the world, the Arts became a considerably used educational approach and coping tool. Although the Department for Education put forward the communication that parents were not expected to act as teachers or to deliver the activities that a school would, it became fascinating to view how many parents turned to the Arts and creative activities.
The Arts however can confidently contribute towards individual health and well-being, and the social integration of school students. Therefore, the ability of students to learn and achieve within their education can be strengthened within the Arts.
What are the benefits of incorporating dance within a child’s learning?
Release of endorphins maintains and contributes to a healthy immune system
Improved motor development
Enables students to express their feelings
Supports students to understand themselves at a better level and use that knowledge to develop and thrive in the classroom
Can I integrate arts-based learning into any subject?
When it comes to how to integrate the Arts into other subjects, teachers overlook the power of such activities:
Act it out
Make collages and models
Use drawings
Tell picture stories
Tell stories through dance
Memorise through song
