Art centers, dance studios and theaters provide children across Northeast Ohio with opportunities to make connections beyond creating art — they also learn to interpret it.
“Simply put, visual literacy is the ability to observe and interpret images,” says Jeremiah Myers, director of school and teaching programs at The Cleveland Museum of Art. “Encouraging children to ‘read’ objects such as paintings and sculptures and asking questions like ‘What do you see?’ or ‘What do you think is happening?’ helps develop their visual literacy. Research shows that visual literacy skills can support a child’s critical thinking skills as well as their verbal and written communication skills.”
The connection between literacy and the arts is shown in many ways, especially through how children think, learn and express themselves.
Edward P. Gallagher, president & CEO of Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood, notes, “For the very young, the arts are the steppingstone to developing language and expression skills.
“Whether it is mimicking the vocal contour of a parent’s voice, moving to a rhythm, reacting to a style of music, or looking closely at pictures — the very young begin to develop oral, visual and auditory communication skills,” he says. “As they age, fine motor skills, which are needed for written communication, are developed by drawing, coloring and creating; music assists in developing phonemic awareness when singing and moving; pre-reading skills are developed by using “books that sing,” where the adult sings the books while the child enjoys the story, the music and the pictures.”
When painting and drawing, children strengthen their vocabulary as they use different words to describe their artwork, express their feelings, and share the ideas behind what they are creating. Through these creative experiences, children are developing literacy skills while practicing self-expression.
“As with any skills, you learn and grow by doing,” Gallagher says. “Immersing a child in an activity that is age and developmentally appropriate enhances fun learning experiences. In theater, reading and memorizing takes many shapes — from the young memorizing a five-line poem or song to the older child that uses a five-page script to interact and tell a story. Many kids learn by doing, by taking part, and digging into experiential and hands-on learning. Out of seat learning at an arts center provides numerous opportunities in all art forms to create, express, and develop language skills on numerous levels.”
Here are some organizations throughout Northeast Ohio that are putting these ideas into practice by using the arts to help children strengthen literacy and communication skills in a variety of programs.
Beck Center for the Arts
Gallagher says for the young, their Kids-n-Arts classes provide a child and their adult to interact in dance, music, theater and/or the visual arts. “They work side by side learning and creating,” he says. “These set the stage for developing literacy skills for the young. As the child grows, classes such as Acting Discovery welcome kids to learn about theater where they interact, read and develop a wide variety of skills that enhance literacy skills. Overall, getting out, taking part and engaging the arts will enhance and develop literacy skills that will serve a child well for their lifetime.”
Dance Cleveland
Read to Learn…Dance to Move, a literacy and movement program designed for preschool and kindergarten students, brings stories to life by combining reading with dance in an interactive way. Through eight classes, children explore different styles of dance while incorporating a children’s book into each lesson. After reading the story together, participants discuss it before retelling the story through dance. This encourages cooperative discussion and literacy development while children learn through both storytelling and movement.
Center for Arts-Inspired Learning (CAL)
CAL provides a wide variety of opportunities where children in grades Pre-K through 12 can learn, create and grow. Through workshops, performances, and both short- and long-term residencies in schools, recreation centers and other youth-serving spaces across Northeast Ohio, CAL brings arts-integrated learning to children throughout the region. “What makes CAL truly special is their ability to connect creative programs to math, science, social studies and language arts content, as well as social-emotional learning,” says Megan Birchfield, Gifted Intervention Specialist – Grades 3-8 from McCormick Middle School. It also offers two free community programs for youth, Inspiration Through Music and ArtWorks.
Cleveland Play House
With its goal of connecting theater education and literacy development, Cleveland Play House’s CARE Program helps students strengthen essential literacy and communication skills through theater games, storytelling, performances and other interactive activities. Students learn to read, speak, interpret, embody and respond to text in engaging ways.
“At Cleveland Play House, we believe that theatre education is a powerful vehicle for literacy learning,” says Pamela DiPasquale, director of education at Cleveland Play House. “It asks students to move beyond simply decoding words and into the deeper work of meaning-making.”
Through a trauma-informed approach, the program creates an emotionally safe learning environment where students can express themselves and grow through the arts.
Arts-integrated learning gives children the opportunity to connect their passions with essential learning skills that can be taken beyond the classroom, into their homes and, most importantly, into their futures. Through programs like these, the connection between the arts and literacy continues to build creativity and skills that will benefit children throughout their lives.
