Engaging Ways to Expose Children to Art & Culture

kidsandculture1

Art, Culture & Kids

These days, most kids know the latest movie coming to theaters each Friday, the words to the most popular songs on the radio, and their favorite food to eat at McDonald’s or Chick Fil-A.  However, when asked to name a composer of a symphony, what Greek food they enjoy, or an artist whose paintings they admire, they might be a bit lost.  While some schools teach some of these things, so much of the curriculum is focused on testing goals and standards, that there is not always a lot of room for the extra, cultural learning. Therefore, it is up to us as parents, to expose our children to art and culture.

kidsandculture2Do an artist study through hands-on learning. Choose an artist to study, such as Jackson Pollock (he is a fun one for kids). Take time to learn about his style of painting, which was called drip painting.  They can learn how he did things differently than other artists- he laid his canvasses on the floor, rather than upright, and he used some non-traditional tools, such as a turkey baster. Find books in your library with his paintings in them, look on line at his paintings, or, if you can, go to a museum that has his art work.  Then, have your kids try to emulate his style of painting. This is fun for kids because you can lay a big piece of craft paper or an old sheet on the grass outside and let them splatter, drip, and splat. This can be done with any artist.

Choose a different culture(s) to study.  Find a culture or country your kids might want to learn more about (perhaps one of your ancestry) and find various ways to learn about it. A really fun way is to learn about the foods of the country and try and make some of them or go to a restaurant to try different ones. You can also learn different customs, style of dress, holidays they celebrate, and how they live. Be sure to find it on a map, too!

Play different kinds of music in your house or in the car. A game I like to play in the car with my kids is to listen to music and to see how many instruments we can identify by the sounds. In addition to listening to different kinds of music, teach your kids about various instruments and how the sound is made from them. You can take your kids to free events, such as a jazz festival in a local park near you, or older kids to a symphony or opera.

To help your kids become well rounded adults who can appreciate cultural diversity, start now.  You may even learn a few things yourself!
 
 
Meet The Bella Behind the Blog: Kristen Farley is a mother of three and a domestic goddess. She is a former teacher who enjoys spending lots of time with her kids, healthy eating, volunteering at school, and mommy blogging for the masses.

Be on the lookout for more of Kristen’s expert advice and brilliant tips!

Author: Kristen Farley

Share This Post On

Related Posts: