Kirsten Reilley

ECE-532 Integrating the arts

Observation-field experience

Ashley Flory states that, Art in the elementary classroom has great beneficial effects on student

learning by stimulating the multiple intelligences present in a typical group of students. (p.34) Not only

do children learn new ways to interact with the world through art, but it also serves as a therapeutic

tool for children with disabilities or emotional issues. Children can have their self-esteem boosted by

creating art. Learning by using the arts as a tool helps to bridge the gap among learners and helps

teachers to reach all children not just the visual and auditory learners. I struggled in those classes that

the teachers only taught through lectures and textbooks. I had a very difficult time memorizing material

and I now know why. I am a naturalistic intrapersonal learner. I learn by doing and having visuals. Art is

and always will be my favorite subject. The arts are a wonderful way to teach new concepts. In this

paper, I will share my observations of music class with preschool aged children as well as share my

experience leading a stem activity for a family night that served children preschool through elementary

aged children.

In my school, we are fortunate enough to have an outside music teacher that comes in to teach. It is an

excellent opportunity to observe the children as well as be a part of the group experiences. The music

teacher began with a hello song that involved the children identifying each others names. This was a

great exercise that helped me assess identifying friends names because we had so many new students.

It wasnt until I really began studying the arts standards did I realize how great the music teacher is at

combining both her area of standards with the other areas such as math, science, and social studies. The

children were all engaged as she always does a great job of getting the kids moving. She read a story

called, Giraffes Cant Dance and put it to music. The children were highly engaged by looking at the
book. At the end of the story the children answered questions. It was a wonderful story that helps boost

self-esteem and acceptance of others. The music teacher then had the children dance to different music

such as hip hop, and classical. The children then were to pick an animal found in the zoo and act like

that animal. If the children were not sure how to move their body to match the animal the music

teacher would give some suggestions. It was an opportunity of choice where all the children got to share

in the fun. There were lots of giggles and smiles. The teacher then had the children regroup by having

them sit on the rug for another story put to music called Marsupial Sue. It was a story that went along

with classical music. The children were settled and were all looking at the book. This book had a lot of

rhyming words. At the end of the story, the teacher called upon children that had not raised their hands

or seemed quiet. They could answer the questions demonstrating they had paid attention to the story.

The teacher handed out shaker eggs for the children to sing the goodbye song. The children all took an

egg and shook it to the beat of the goodbye song. The greatest thing I took away from this observation

of music class is that the children really had a good time. They were smiling, laughing, moving, and

singing. The most important factor to learning is having fun and being engaged. When I later did a recall

exercise asking the children about their favorite part of the day, about half of the children stated music

class and half of them stated water play. Both of these activities involved a lot of motor movement. The

kids didnt say center time or listening to the morning story. Kids need to move and enjoy music. I also

want to add that even though this observation is in a preschool, I have been in the elementary schools

enough to know the older kids need to move just as much as the younger kids.

At my school, this week we had Steam night. It is a fun family night in which the families come and

participate in steam activities planned by the teachers. Steam stands for Science, Technology,

Engineering, Art, and Math. For my activity, I chose to have the children build and construct robots. The

activity was for children and adults of all ages. The materials consisted of recycled products such as

toilet paper rolls, caps to and lids to all sorts of containers, water bottles. And Styrofoam blocks and
spheres. I had googly eyes pipe cleaners wood pieces, and foil. I also provided duct tape and ticky tac as

an adhesive. You may wonder why I did not provide glue o glue sticks. Well we were expecting 35

families in attendance and that would make for a lot of glue mess. The children were instructed to pick a

large shape to wrap with foil for the main body of the robot and then could use any of the materials to

build. The children had a great time with this activity and some would have stayed there all night making

their robots. The parents even enjoyed it and some were making their own robots. I wasnt sure how the

children would respond to this activity because it was my first time doing it. I was pleased in that they

wanted to come and make a robot as well as were excited to find me and show me their creations they

made with their families. The best part of this activity was seeing the smiles showing their pride in their

creations. If anyone is looking for a great activity for children aged preschool through elementary, boys

and girls, start recycling and creating.

When children are involved in art projects with peers, it creates an environment that helps to provide

feedback building self-esteem or abilities to cope with criticism. (Lock, C. ArtsEdge.org). The creative

arts help bridge the gap of learning styles by reaching the children that dont learn in an auditory or

visual way. Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand. -Unknown
Works Cited

Flory, A. (2008). Exploring the benefits of art in elementary education. California State University Honors

Program Journal. Retrieved from

https://www.csustan.edu/sites/default/files/honors/documents/journals/elements/Flory.pdf"

Turn to the Arts to Boost Self-Esteem." PBS. Public Broadcasting Service, 25 May 2012. Web. 09 Aug.

2017.