Art and craft activities help children with learning disabilities

Art, crafts or drawing are creative activities which help children in learning disabilies. Being an art/crafts teacher I have noticed that these activities are very helpful in skill development, which helps children in other subjects.

Learning Disabilities and the Arts

The arts are more than a fun, superficial way to keep kids occupied. Art activities can help children with learning disabilities begin to overcome the challenges they face in learning in many different ways. Of course, having a learning disability does not necessarily mean that a person has an exceptional artistic talent. However, music, art, crafts and dance can give students with learning disabilities a chance to express themselves through different media and gain confidence along the way.

Unlocking Confidence
A feeling of self-worth - the knowledge that you can do something - is a critical part of the learning process. Children with learning disabilities often come to think they are incapable of learning because of their ongoing difficulties in school. A paintbrush, a costume, a drum or paper, scissors and glue can be new tools for self-expression that boost confidence while providing opportunities for learning and practice.

Learning Through Art
The arts can open the world of learning to students who have trouble with traditional teaching methods. The arts are intellectual disciplines - requiring complex thinking and problem solving - that offer students the opportunity to construct their own understanding of the world.

* Drawing and painting reinforce motor skills and can also be a way of learning shapes, contrasts, boundaries, spatial relationships, size and other math concepts.

* Music teaches children about rhythm, sound and pitch. Beats can help children learn rhymes and other features of reading such as phonological awareness. Using repetitive songs to learn academic facts (like the alphabet song or multiplication tables) can make the learning experience easier and more fun.

* Dance provides children with a social way to learn about sequencing, rhythm and following directions. While developing coordination and motor control, students can also learn counting and directionality, which can enhance reading and writing concepts - such as understanding the difference between similar looking letters (like p/b/d/q) and telling left from right.

* Performing plays is an opportunity for children to immerse themselves in a theme and learn about it in a profound and personal way. Acting out historical or literary figures and events gives students a sense of ownership about what they've learned, allowing them to acquire a deeper appreciation of the subject matter.

* Crafts offer children the opportunity to express themselves in two- and three-dimensional ways. Students can develop vital problem-solving skills without having to rely on areas of expression that may be more challenging.
Arts as a means of assessment

Timed tests and take-home reports are traditional means of academic assessment that can be especially difficult for individuals with learning disabilities. Creative projects offer these students the freedom to show what they know without the constraints of printed text. Offering students art projects or multi-media presentations as a way to demonstrate an understanding of material they've learned can be an excellent alternative.

Because a person has difficulty learning through hearing alone or seeing alone does not mean they cannot learn. The arts offer individuals with learning disabilities dynamic ways of learning, and just as importantly, a way to fully discover their own self-worth.

Article is courtesy of "National Ceneter for learning disabilities"
- source link

Craft activities improve student learning skills

There is a strong link between crafts activities and skill development among children of all ages. I am also a craft teacher and noticed it very often that many kind of crafts help in skill development which as a results produce good learning outcome in their other subject areas. Let's have a look at some research based studies and reports in this connection:

"The Academic Value of Hands-on Craft Projects in Elementary Schools"

Conducted in 2001 by ROCKMAN ET AL, an independent educational research and consulting company, the study revealed the following key findings:

* Student learning improves when classroom lessons incorporate hands-on craft activities.
* Students develop greater curiosity about the subject matter when craft projects are included.
* Student behavior and socialization skills improve when crafts are undertaken.'

Teachers regularly use craft projects to teach the core subjects and link the projects to state and national curriculum standards.
Teachers say learning through craft projects accommodates students with different learning styles.

Focus Group Research

In 2005 teachers from two different U.S. cities, Paramus, NJ and Cleveland, OH, participated in two focus group studies. Key findings of these studies include:
Crafts can enhance the lesson and the learning process and in many cases are vital to the learning process.
Crafts can be a break from some of the serious and boring academic activities
Through the use of crafts, teachers gain a better understanding of the child’s thought process
Teachers agree the average amount of time for a craft activity in the classroom is thirty minutes.
During the fall of 2001, the Hobby Industry Association (HIA) contracted [with] an independent educational research and consulting company, to study the impact of hands-on craft projects as an instructional method within the core curriculum. Additionally, they wished to determine ways this teaching technique links to state and national education standards.

As the only large-scale study of its kind, and one of the first efforts to investigate the area of hands-on projects and academic learning, this study found that a significant number of teachers use hands-on projects linked to core curriculum content to advance standards-based learning. Teachers said hands-on projects enhance the instructional process and help students learn both basic information and more complex ideas. Additionally, students develop important learning skills and the abilities to articulate complex ideas, to use appropriate and sophisticated terminology, and to integrate the ideas they have learned into their continuing learning efforts. This belief was confirmed by student data evidence collected in this study.

KEY FINDINGS

Student learning improves when classroom lessons incorporate hands-on craft projects.

Students who spent a greater proportion of their classroom learning time engaged in hands-on projects scored significantly higher on writing and drawing knowledge application tasks. In classes that spent almost half of instructional time on hands-on projects (48%), students scored an average of 83 out of a possible 100 on the knowledge application task. Comparatively, students whose classes devoted a low percentage of class time to craft projects (11.8%) scored an average of 75. The creativity and level of detail students demonstrated on the application tasks also indicated that the hands-on projects left many students with vivid and lasting understanding of both facts and concepts.

Teachers regularly use hands-on craft projects to teach the core subjects and link the projects to state and national curriculum standards.

Almost three-fourths (72%) of the participating teachers indicated that they explicitly and intentionally link their instructional units involving hands-on projects to state or national standards. In addition, writing, research and presentation skills are typically incorporated into the projects.

Students develop greater curiosity about the subject matter when hands-on craft projects are included.

Ninety-six percent (96%) of teachers agreed that students exhibit greater curiosity about the learning unit when hands-on projects are included in the instructional approach. Teachers also reported significant differences in learning behaviors when students are involved in hands-on projects. They reported increases in student motivation, willingness to ask questions and volunteer information, enthusiasm, and attention to assigned tasks.

Teachers say learning through hands-on craft projects accommodates students with different learning styles.

While 46% of teachers viewed hands-on projects as an effective learning technique for all students, 54% said this approach is particularly well suited for students who learned more effectively in non-traditional approaches, such as visual or kinesthetic learners, slow readers or writers, or non-native English speakers.

Student behavior and socialization skills improve when hands-on craft projects are undertaken.

Teachers reported enhanced cooperation, responsibility, dedication, confidence, and time management skills when students participated in hands-on projects. Eighty-five percent (85%) of the teachers said students work cooperatively on handcrafted projects, while only 50% of the teachers said they do so in non hands-on projects.

CONCLUSION

The study concludes that hands-on craft projects are an effective means of teaching a standards-based curriculum and that students develop both a greater appreciation for and understanding of what they are learning.

Hands-on projects appear to function as learning anchors that organize and integrate various classroom-learning activities.

By making the learning experience concrete, the dynamics of these learning anchors inspire students to enjoy learning, accomplish goals, take pride in their achievements, and persevere in their learning.

For the full 45 page PDF report: Download for FREE

Tips to develop your child’s language and communication skills

Every year few children enter in nursery class, with inadequate language and communication skills. One or two to them have speech or language impairments which need professional help. As a parent or teacher we can help our children in developing language and communication skills.

But how to do it?

Literacy trust.org provides tips and guidance in developing these skills.

"Literacy trust" explains it:
“Talking and listening to young children helps them develop good language and communication skills, which enables them to express themselves, listen, learn, read, write and socialize better. It also helps children feel valued, builds their confidence and helps parents and children to bond.”

The National Literacy Trust is an independent charity, and all the resources or information from the site are FREE.

Mission:
Their vision is that within 10 years They will have facilitated a positive cultural shift so that all children receive from their parents and careers a stimulating language-rich start to life.

MOre about the site:

It started in January 2003, to provide a one-stop shop for information, advice and downloadable free resources on early language and communication to support early years professionals and inform parents.
They have raised some very specific issues to campaign on, such as the need for pusher-facing pushchairs and buggies and the need for the topic of language acquisition to be taught in schools.

Sign up for quarterly email newsletter

sign up link

There are a lot of useful links, articles and information at the site, so as a parent or teacher, my advice is to book mark this site and take time to search the whole site.

As 2008 is named the "National year of reading" we can participate in this Campaign by encouraging our young ones and involving ourselves in reading and talking with them.

More links:
* A guide for talking to school age children

Tips to deal with your hyperactive child

Hyperactivity is associated with the term ADHD (Attention deficit byperactivity disorder) and related with lack of attention span, lower grades in school and many behavioral problems. According to a research, between 4 and 12 percent of school-age children have ADHD. But many people are still unaware of ADHD term.

* "Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD)"

"kids growth.com" provides rich content to guide parents about parenting, child development and reltated issues. It provides tips to deals with your hyperactive child. As these tips are provided by a research based from a doctor.

"10 Family Guidelines for Living with a hyperactive child"

1. Accept your child's limitations.
Parents should not expect to eliminate the hyperactivity but just keep it under reasonable control. Hyperactivity is not intentional. Any undue criticism or attempts to change your child into a quiet child or "model child" will cause more harm than good. You must accept the fact that your child is intrinsically active and energetic and possibly always will be. Nothing is more helpful for the hyperactive child than having a tolerant, patient, low-key parent.

2. Provide outlets for the release of excess energy.
This energy can't be bottled up and stored. These children need daily outside activities such as running, sports, or long walks. A fenced yard helps. In bad weather, your child needs a recreational room where he can do as he pleases without criticism. If no large room is available, a garage will sometimes suffice. Although the expression of hyperactivity is allowed in these ways, it should not be needlessly encouraged. Adults should not engender rough-housing with these children. Siblings should be forbidden to say "Chase me, chase me!" or to instigate other noisy play. Rewarding hyperactive behavior leads to its becoming your child s main style of interacting with people.

3. Keep the home existence organized.
Household routines help the hyperactive child accept order. Keep mealtimes, chores, and bedtimes as consistent as possible. Predictable responses by the parents to different daily events help the child become more predictable.

4. Try to avoid fatigue in these children.
When your child is exhausted, self-control often breaks down and the hyperactivity becomes extreme.

5. Avoid formal gatherings.
Settings where hyperactivity would be extremely inappropriate and embarrassing should be completely avoided. Examples of this would be church, restaurants, etc. Of lesser importance, the child can forego some trips to stores and supermarkets to reduce unnecessary friction between the child and parent. After the child develops adequate self-control at home, these activities can gradually be introduced.

6. Maintain firm discipline.
These children are unquestionably difficult to manage. They need more careful, planned discipline than the average child. Rules should be formulated mainly to prevent harm to the child or others. Aggressive behavior and manipulative behavior should be no more accepted in the hyperactive child than in the normal child. Unlike the expression of hyperactivity, aggressive behavior should be eliminated. Also, rules to prevent the destruction of important property should be in effect. Unnecessary rules should be avoided. These children tolerate fewer rules than the normal child. The family needs a few clear, important rules, with other rules added at the child s own pace. Parents must avoid being after the child all the time with negative comments like "Don t do this" and "Stop that."

7. Enforce discipline with nonphysical punishment.
The family must have an "isolation room" or "time-out place" to back up their attempts to enforce rules, if a show of disapproval doesn t work. This room can be the child s bedroom. The child should be sent there to "shape up" and allowed out as soon as he has changed his behavior. Without an isolation room, overall success is unlikely. Physical punishment should be avoided in these children since we want to teach them to be less aggressive, rather than make aggression acceptable. These children need adult models of control and calmness.

8. Stretch your child's attention span.
Rewarding nonhyperactive behavior is the key to preparing these children for school. Increased attention span and persistence with tasks can be taught to these children at home. The child can be shown pictures in a book; and, if he is attentive, he can be rewarded with praise and a hug. Next the parent can read stories to him. Coloring of pictures can be encouraged and rewarded. Games of increasing difficulty can gradually be taught to the child, starting with building blocks and progressing eventually to dominoes, card games, and dice games. Matching pictures is an excellent way to build a child s memory and concentration span. The child s toys should not be excessive in number, for this can accentuate his distractibility. They should also be ones that are safe and relatively unbreakable.

9. Buffer the child against any overreaction by neighbors.
If your child receives a reputation for being a "bad kid," it is important that this doesn t carry over into his home life. At home the attitude that must prevail is that the child is a "good child with excess energy." It is extremely important that the parents do not give up on this child. He must always feel accepted by his family. As long as he has acceptance, his self-esteem and self-confidence will survive.

10. Periodically get away from it all.
Parents must get away from the hyperactive child often enough to be able to tolerate him. Exposure to some of these children for 24 hours a day would make anyone a wreck. When the father comes home, he should try to look after the child and give his wife a deserved break. A babysitter two afternoons a week and an occasional evening out with her husband can salvage an exhausted mother. A preschool nursery or Head Start class is another option. Parents need a chance to rejuvenate themselves.

Author: H. Winter Griffith, M.D.
Source link: Kids growth.com
Related posts:
Drug free treatment of "Attention Deficit Disorder"

Learn origami for the development of creative skills

Origami is an ancient art, which is very popular among children as well as adults. Despite of having fun from this good pass time/hobby, origami has some benefits in skill development.

Origami can be used for skill development by educators, teachers, Psychologists, Physicians, Parents for educational, developmental, and therapeutic aspects. Origami is good for any age: from kids, those who start learning all by themselves, to persons of mature years who don't stop developing their own individuality.
What is happening when we are doing origami?

Body level:
Your hands are made active, they give impulses to your brain, and activate your left and right hemispheres. Tactile, motor and visual brain's zones are made very active.

Soul level:
Your emotions are painted with joy, satisfaction, and pride in your own work. They broaden your emotional self-image.

Mind level:
Your memory, non-verbal thinking, attention, 3D-comp-rehension, imagination are working hard.


More benefits?

"Oriland.com" has described 10 reasons to be involved in origami:

1. Development of fine 'motor skills' of both hands.

2. Development of intellectual abilities.

3. Development of creative abilities.

4. Activation of the Right and Left hemispheres of the brain.

5. Development of imagination.

6. Development of attention.

7. Development of memory.

8. Development of patience.

9. Emotional and aesthetic experiences.

10. Joy, satisfaction and pride in your own work!

Source link: 10 Reasons to be involved in Origami

Where to learn origami?
You can find many books from internet, but to start learning there are many sites, which provide free stuff.
Go to the article: learn origami


HOW ORIGAMI HELPS TO DEVELOP CHILDREN

Scientific proof how origami helps to develop skills:
Ph.D. thesis by Katrin and Yuri Shumakov

Left Brain and Right Brain at Origami Training

* More reading: ORIGAMI BENEFITS

Related posts:

* Learn origami at the internet!

* Useful links and resources for paper crafts!

How to choose toys for your child?

My son is now 9 years old, and I can understand that his days of watching "cartoon movies" and playing with legos, bricks are gone. But still it is difficult to choose a gift for him. It is difficult for me to keep him busy when he is not doing his home work. But he has passion of making crafts out of recycle stuff. And I am happy that he himself finds enough material around the house to keep him busy most of the time.

This question is really important for every parent, which is "how to choose toys for a child?" Because not only toys are a good pass time for children, but they learn from it, developing theri skills at the same time.

Even the most expensive toys will be completely useless if they are not appropriate for your child. A good toy for one child isn't necessarily a good toy for another child. When you purchase a toy, you need to consider your child's personality, likes, and dislikes. In this article, we will answer all of your toy questions, including:

Children's Toy Safety

Every year hundreds of thousands of children get injured playing with the toys their friends and family have bought for them. Though there are manufacturer standards, your child's toys need to be further inspected by you for safety. In this section, we will give a list of safety concerns that you should consider before you bring a toy home for your child. From shocks, to choking, to burning, we will show you the hazards you need to look out for.

Age-Appropriate Toys

If a toy is beyond your child's level of development the child will quickly become frustrated and overwhelmed. If the toy is too far below your child's development level, they will become bored and lose interest. The right toy can also help your child's imagination and creativity grow and blossom. On this page, we will help you match age-appropriate toys to your child's age. From birth all the way through the third year of life, we will show you the toys that will be best for you child.

About the Author:
Alvin Eden, M.D.: Alvin Eden, M.D. serves as a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the Weil Medical College of Cornell University in New York, New York. He is Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn. Dr. Eden is also the author of a number of child care book, including Positive Parenting and Growing Up Thin.
For full article link: How to Choose Toys for a Child

Suggestion for electronic and educational toys:

* Educational Electronic Toys

* Creative toys

*** At Best Child Toys you can get advice on how to choose the best toys and games for your child, and how to maximize the use of toys for your children's benefit.

Selectively chosen toys and games are hugely beneficial for your children. Not only they are good for boosting your children's development, they are also good in helping your children to learn. With educational toys and games in tow, your children will grow to love learning.

For each type of toys, you will find these following information:

- The benefits and drawbacks of each type of toy.
- tips and advice on how to choose a child toy with the best value.
- tips on how to maximize the play value of a particular toy 'beyond' the manufacturer recommendation.

FREE offer from the site:

* Get the FREE e-book "The Secret On How To Save Money And Time On Toy Shopping"
What you can read there at e-book?

- The secret of stress-free toy shopping.

- How to save money on child toys

- Sure ways to prevent overspending on toys.

- How to recognize toys which are not only fun, but can dramatically boost your child's development.

- How to recognize toys which are just a waste of money.
And much more ...

- Click on the link, enter your e-mail to get your copy: Toy Shopping Guide E-Book


* "Ape 2 zebra" is an online store from Campbellville, Ontario and this site is from parents who are concerned about helping children learn while having fun. Site provides some of the finest educational toys and products available to help their children learn while having fun.


Site also provides tips and guide on choosing toys to develop skills like:

- Toys to develop fine motor skills

- Toys for gross motor skills

- Social Developmental Toys

- Reading and writing

Get their newsletter: link

Related posts:

* Role of educational toys and games in skill development

* Review: "Dr.toy's Guide" --dealing in educational toys and products!

Role of educational toys and games in skill development

Educational toys are part of the modern educator's curriculum. These educational toys and games are fun to play while they help the child in skill development.

Wikipedia says:

Educational Toys In Child Development:
"Educational toys enhance intellectual, social, emotional, and/or physical development. Educational toys are thus designed to encourage reasonable development milestones within appropriate age groups.

For preschool age youngsters, simple wooden blocks might be a good starting point for a child to begin to understand causal relationships, basic principals of science (e.g. if a block falls from the top of a structure, it will fall until a surface stops its fall), and develop patience and rudimentary hand-eye coordination.

For a child moving towards elementary school, other, more sophisticated manipulatives might further aid the development of these skills. Interlocking manipulative toys like Legos or puzzles challenge the child to improve hand/eye coordination, patience, and an understanding of spacial relationships. Finally, a child in elementary school might use very sophisticated construction sets that include moving parts, motors and others to help further understand the complex workings of the world. Importantly, the educational value derived by the child increases when the educational toy is age appropriate."

In an article from "Creativity Institute" it says:
"Playing with blocks can be good for children with ADHD"

"Block play can be great for many ages. From simple stack-up and knock-over fun to imaginative building. Blocks teach problem-solving skills, because a child discovers how stacking and matching can produce different results. They can also become components of pretend play, because a child can fantasize what the structures are. There are also big foam blocks that are almost "life size" and let children create their own fantasy playhouses. These lightweight blocks are so versatile, they can be climbed on or tunneled under. Magnetic block and construction sets have pieces that connect in more ways than can conventional plastic snap-together blocks and allow even more imaginative opportunities. And don't forget the versatility of the classic wooden building blocks.
Blocks, like many traditional toys, have other educational advantages for a child with ADHD. The number of positive outcomes is limitless, so children can continue playing until they've reached a level of personal satisfaction."

* Nik Nak toys offers: Child Development Chart: It is Child Development Toy Guide for you to use when considering which toys to give to loved ones. This provides guidelines to development stages and then suggests appropriate educational toys.

Teachers can use this guide in kindergarten or pre-school stages, where you need to provide learning in a fun way.

Someone said "Education is what creates true motivated free thinkers." and there is no doubt that when learning is fun, you can get success in creating true motivated free thinkers.

* Find the right toy.com is online retailer of educational toys for all children. It guides you in finding the right toy for your child. This site is useful for both parents and teachers as it guides you to choose the toys, which might help in developing skill level in many areas like as "visual, sensory, social, emotional, and so on.

It showcases meaningful advances in child development and educational learning toys. From kids' mobility toys to visual learning and developmental toys, your leader in educational toys.
What they do?

"We do the legwork for you, sorting through the veritable litany of "developmental" toys and educational "learning" toys. We've taken professional experience in developmental therapy and put it to work, screening toys that make a difference in the lives of children and parents. When it comes to child development and occupational therapy toys, we're serious about success. From kids' mobility toys to sensory stimulation toys and improving hand eye coordination. Our collection of educational toys capitalizes on your child's strengths by using them to develop weaknesses. With developmental toys and more we've put the child back in child development."

* Creativity Institute deals in toys which bring out the creativity in your child. They believe that "Every child has creative ability just waiting to be tapped!"
What they say:
"We've selected toys we believe can help develop creativity in children, whether the creative process comes naturally to them or not.

Through our newsletter and articles featured on creativityinstitute.com, we do everything we can to try to help parents nurture creativity in their children with helpful hints, advice and suggested activities."
Their blog has many useful posts about creativity.

* Learning toy center says in "Why Educational Toys For Your Child?":

"Learning and developing new skills as a child grows can make a big impact on their life. Educational toys and games help stimulate a child’s creativity as well as their development. "

*** Sites providing educational toys and games for your child