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6 Reasons to Keep Art in Schools

July 17, 2012
Parenting.com
© Melissa Taylor

With tight budgets, school districts often cut the arts. But, do kids lose when art is cut?

Well, you be the judge. Let's look at the benefits of arts. Here's what the research says:

1. Art helps kids learn­ to engage and per­sist. 
“ Students need to find prob­lems of inter­est and work with them deeply over sustained periods of time,”
  Stu­dio Think­ing: The Real Ben­e­fits of Visual Art Edu­ca­tion by Lois Hetland, Ellen Winner, Shirley Venom, and Kimberly M. Sheridan.

2. Art enhances critical thinking skills
America for the Arts, 2002 

3. Art helps children communicate emotions.

4. Art gets kids motivated about school, especially at risk students.
The Arts and Achievement in At-Risk Youth, NEA

5. Art benefits student achievement .
National Assembly of State Art Agencies (NASAA) 

6. Art increases self-esteem, creativity, and achievement .
Champions of Change, Arts Education Partnership & The President's Committee on the Arts & the Humanities 

So, what do you think? Cut arts or not?

Melissa Taylor is a freelance writer, an award-winning educational blogger at ImaginationSoup, an award-winning teacher with a M.A. in Education, and a mom of two children, ages 6 and 9. Follow Taylor on Twitter or find her on Facebook.

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