The Art Critique is here to enlighten everyone on the importance of art in a child’s development. Creativity and other essential skills can be developed by producing arts and crafts, drawings, and paintings. Here’s how Tiger and Tim learning videos can encourage it.
Well, hello boys and girls, it’s me, the mustachioed wonder, THE ART CRITIQUE from Tiger and Tim online learning videos for kids! Tiger invited me over to his blog so I can share my expertise and wisdom about art to all our grown-up readers out there. Much to Tim’s delight, of course (Hello Dear Tim)!
As you can tell, art is something I am very passionate about. I BREATHE art, I am not called The Art Critique for nothing! So I would like to talk about the importance of making art to all Tiger Cubs. You see, Mums, Dads, Aunts, Uncles, Grandpas, and Grandmas, art is not just about making a big mess on the kitchen table or doodling on the pristine white walls of the house – art, for children’s development, is essential. You may not see it now, but you might just be raising the next Picasso! Our educational videos for toddlers and older kids (where I am prominently featured *ahem*) can further encourage love and appreciation for the arts!
I now have my trusty monocle on so let’s talk about art, for art’s sake!
Developmental Benefits of Art
Aside from developing Tiger Cubs’ creativity, art also helps in many other developmental milestones.
Motor Skills
Making art would typically include gripping the paintbrush or crayon, which would greatly help with a toddler’s fine motor skills. When doing craft projects, kids could also make use of child-safety scissors, which can help develop their dexterity. All these fine motor skill exercises are necessary in many different ways and, most importantly, in learning how to write.
Language and Communication
If you know me from our educational videos for kids, you know that I LOVE talking about art, art, and more art, which is why doing arts and crafts can significantly help with a Tiger Cub’s language and communication skills.
Being immersed in making art can enrich a young one’s vocabulary – from distinguishing the different colours to talking about their work using descriptive words, as I do! Arts and crafts activities can also help children learn about different shapes and even actions words.
Critical Thinking Skills
Making art allows children to explore, to test out what works, and what does not. As they create, they explore different possibilities and work out the problems – all these decisions hone their critical thinking skills. So art not only makes Tiger Cubs creative, but smarter, too!
Social-Emotional Skills
Social-emotional development refers to a child’s expression of his or her experiences and how they manage thir emotions. Art itself is self-expression in its purest form, and it can help children express a wide range of their very colourful emotions, especially when their vocabulary is still emerging.
Apart from helping Tiger Cubs express their emotions, they can also learn to tell how they feel about others. This is what I do in my segment of our educational learning videos for kids, since the children learn to show appreciation for others’ artworks and value other Cubs’ effort to create their masterpiece! Creating paintings and other works of art with others also helps children understand the importance of sharing and taking turns.
How to Foster Creativity at Home
As you have seen in Tiger and Tim online learning videos for kids, you know that I am a true master of the arts! You can also help your Tiger Cubs develop an artistic eye (monocle not necessary)!
Let your Tiger Cubs’ inner ARTISTE shine through by fostering art in your own home! Here’s how parents and grown-ups can do it:
- Embrace the mess – it may be a headache now, but the mess is actually a good sign that your little one’s mind is hard at work! To help you keep the clutter to a minimum, set up an art station in your house, and have a drop cloth or old newspapers handy. If the weather permits, you can have the children paint outdoors, too!
- Be an audience, not a director – avoid giving Tiger Cubs directions when they are creating something, especially if it’s free-form. Instead of being a director, be an encouraging and supportive audience instead, and let your child’s masterpiece come to life!
- Talk about art – once your child’s artwork is done, let them express how they feel about it! Talk about what they created, the colours they used, and even how they made the piece. This will enrich their vocabulary and develop their communication skills so they can grow up to be master art appreciators, like me!
Encouraging Creativity with Tiger and Tim Educational Videos For Toddlers
Learning videos for kids, like Tiger and Tim, can inspire young minds to create their own artworks! Tiger and Tim episodes always feature me in “Picture This”, where I share artworks of Tiger Cubs all over the world!
The children can be inspired by me and our episode’s theme to create their own masterpiece. Our latest episode is all about food, so watching it can also inspire them to reach for a snack!
Grown-ups can also encourage the little ones to share their ideas on the different works of art featured in my Art Gallery. Doing so will not only develop children’s communication skills, but adults can also guide them in exploring their emotions.
So what are you waiting for? Start creating those fantastic works of art and send us a photo of it through this link. I will be waiting for your fabulous masterpieces!
Want to know more about how Tiger and Tim can help with your child’s development? Read our other blog posts here.
Best wishes, from your very favourite Art Critique!