HOW ARTS & CRAFTS HELP CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Are you looking for a fun and effective way to help your child start developing important life skills? Look no further than arts and crafts activities! Crafting helps kids of all ages develop a wide range of valuable skills, including developing their fine motor skills and their critical thinking skills. By engaging in arts and crafts, children develop their eye coordination and learn to think outside the box and so much more. Whether it's painting, drawing, or creating their own unique projects, art children are constantly learning and growing. So why not spark their creativity and watch their skills flourish through the power of crafting?
HOW ARTS & CRAFTS HELP CHILD DEVELOPMENT
How Arts & Crafts Differ From Sensory Play
Arts, crafts, and sensory play have quite a bit of overlap in benefits, materials, and fun. Depending on your child’s personality they may enjoy arts and crafts over sensory play, while others will be drawn to sensory play for its non-structured nature and open play. Each of these activities has a time and place, and they are great tools for parents and caregivers to use on different occasions. Arts and crafts can be used to focus on a different set of skills and levels of expression, which we will discuss below!
While both sensory play, and arts and crafts offer an opportunity to create moments for talking to our children about holidays, birthdays, and/or other concepts, they each have their own strengths and processes.
We have already discussed the benefits of playing with playdough and the importance of sensory play. In this blog, we’ll discuss the unique benefits of doing arts and crafts with your child/children and what unique skills they can develop.
The 7 Skills that Arts & Crafts Help Develop in Kids
1. Arts and crafts provide an opportunity for children to express their likes and preferences.
Although there is a goal and usually a sample of what we hope the craft will look like, there is usually some wiggle room for different colors, stickers, shapes, and other creativity. Maybe the craft had pink flowers but your child chose black! Or maybe your child didn’t layer the heart-wreath symmetrically but off-centered. This gives parents and caregivers an opportunity to learn and celebrate what our child likes versus what we like.
You may be inclined to persuade your child to do the craft “perfectly,” but many children are intentional about how they approach the craft and that tells us about them. Have you ever attempted to make a Thanksgiving-related craft, but your child at the moment is still drawn to Halloween colors and stickers, so it turns into that? Moments like these give you an opportunity to engage with what your child is liking at the moment and make a connection with them.
2. Arts and crafts provide opportunities to practice fine-motor skills.
Gluing, cutting, taping, scribbling, coloring, and painting are all fine motor skills that can be practiced while having fun and expressing creativity! Small and controlled hand movement is a skill that children will be using for the rest of their lives when writing, tying their shoes, typing, etc.
3. Arts and crafts promote literacy and the understanding of math concepts.
Children will practice listening and following directions as they implement every step of the craft. Moreover, caregivers can incorporate conversation around shapes, colors, and other materials to promote learning new vocabulary. Depending on the complexity of the art project, children may be required to count different materials, and measure tape/paper, which are all basic math skills.
4. Arts and crafts promote social skills in children.
More often than not, arts and crafts will require some form of cooperation as your child learns about a new craft. Whether it is just you and them, or they are in a classroom they will have to learn how to communicate (e.g. ask for more glue, ask for help peeling stickers, opening a pain bottle, etc), problem solve (e.g. figure out how much glue to use, decide what brush to pick, etc) and collaborate with others (e.g. patiently wait for their turn to use the glue stick or other tools and materials).
5. Arts and crafts develop cognitive skills.
Planning and organization are a few examples of some cognitive skills that children are practicing when crafting. They may learn the importance of keeping the glue brushes separate from the paint brushes, and/or why the glitter is kept inside a tray or box. They may also, through some trial and error, learn how to put pieces together to create something new.
6. Arts and crafts nurture confidence.
Considering arts and crafts have a beginning, an end, and include a step-by-step process, your child will know when the craft is complete and feel a great sense of accomplishment from it. Whether you made a Valentines Day paper wreath, or a Christmas ornament from ice-cream sticks, putting your child’s craft on display in your house will build their self-esteem and confidence.
7. Arts and crafts help children understand themselves and their world.
Unlike adults, young kids are not able to journal, read, or meditate in order to process their thoughts and feelings. Processing thoughts and feelings with children requires intentional connection and time with them. Art is one avenue that promotes expression in a reflective way. Painting and coloring allows children to express themselves in ways that they may not have words for yet.
Although as parents and caregivers we may seek out crafts and art ideas for our children as a form of entertainment, it is life-giving to know that they also encourage the development of many social and problem solving skills.
Ready to craft?
Find some of our favorite Mothercould art and craft ideas below:
To shop favorite Mothercould craft supplies, be sure to check this list!
Just getting started with your art supplies collection? Check out this list!
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