Using Art in the Classroom for Adult Students & its Benefits

 Using Art in the Classroom for Adult Students & its Benefits 

Using art in the classroom is important for adult students as it provides many benefits. There is a huge variety of skills that students can develop and gain just from simply participating in art. Some of these skills include improved focus and problem solving, intrinsic motivation, self expression and creativity, confidence, promotes engagement, determination and perseverance, cooperation and collaboration, and higher academics. Art increases the quality of learning in the classroom. Teachers should integrate art in the classroom to engage students in learning, increase excitement in the classroom, and keep them focused on the task at hand.

Here are some additional ways to utilize art in the classroom. Students can use poetry to write about poems their teacher selects for them. The students can then illustrate what is happening in the poems by producing works of art in class through the use of pictures, paintings, graphics, drawings with crayons or markers, or origami. The art method possibilities are endless. For reading or writing class, students can also use art to tell a story of what they have learnt. Students have to thoughtfully plan out how they illustrate the drawings to make sure they match the words on the book’s pages. This can be used for history and science projects as well. Students can paint to represent different countries or states for a history project. A requirement for this art project would be that students make sure they gain an in-depth understanding beforehand of the specific country or state’s environment, culture, and traditions. 

Especially when it comes to English language learners for ESOL classes, art can be especially helpful. A very good strategy to help students comprehend a word’s meaning is to allow them to create a word picture. This is helpful when introducing new vocabulary to students. Teachers can assign students in groups to colorfully write out the word. They can then draw pictures to represent the same word. Aside from students getting a chance to create during this activity, they also get to practice with spelling new words that weren’t familiar to them. This also helps students retain the word’s definition more effectively. During the process, using art can boost student performance and participation in class as it allows the student to get their brains working more in a way that is also fun at the same time.