Running Head: ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING

A Different Perspective: Analyzing and Researching a Childs Drawing Shelby Davison University of Missouri - Columbia

ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING A Different Perspective: Analyzing and Researching a Childs Drawing When thinking about childrens art in the past, I never gave much thought to what they were drawing or how they were putting things on the paper. Most childrens art either didnt make sense to me, or I only thought of it as a childs unskilled representation of what they were

seeing in the world. However, as a soon to be elementary teacher, I have taken a new perspective in the art work that children draw. A well rounded teacher must understand that artistic literacy should be valued just as much as mathematical numeracy or word literacy. In Daniel Pinks book A Whole New Mind (2005), he discusses the differences between the right and left brain thinkers in society. The left brain tends to be more sequential, specializing in text, and analyzing details. While the right brain is simultaneous, specializes in context, and synthesizes the big picture. The right brain is thought of as the more artistic side, and is often and unjustly considered the lesser of the two hemispheres. He states, Of course, we need both approaches in order to craft fulfilling lives and build productive, just societies (Pink, 2005, p. 27). This is why as a teacher we must encourage growth in all subjects. Just like with understanding in other subjects, art literacy is a growing process. When a child comes into your classroom they are divided by age and grade level. This is based on their developmental stage in learning, and just like in learning, art has developmental stages. According to Erickson and Young (1996), childrens ability to understand art develops in a parallel fashion to changes in their cognitive, emotional, social, and physical growth. So, as children grow older and their comprehension of science, math, and literature develops, so should their understanding of art. It is a never ending process that we, as teachers must help to cultivate. As a future educator, it is important to be able to determine each students developmental stage

ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING

in art and comprehend what they are capable of now, and what I can encourage them to try in the future. Description and Analysis The childs artwork chosen for the use of this assignment (see Figure 1) seems to be from a child in one of the lower stages of artistic learning. Figure 1 is a drawing consisting of two mediums, colored pencil (or pencil) and marker. In the picture the child has drawn a person with medium length, dark hair, with very simple facial details. The artist drew two dots for eyes, one dot for a nose, and a big arching line for a smile. The person in the picture has arms and legs drawn, but in a distorted form, almost comparable to a lady bug. The body of he/she is a large oval with Figure 1. An example of a childs drawing in the Preschematic Stage a swirl pattern drawn around the border of the body. The person depicted is standing next to a house, and is nearly as tall as the main part of the house. The house seems to be a square home, with a door depicted using darker shading. There is a roof on the house with circles drawn to show shingles. Next to the house is a large tree. The trunk of the tree is colored in dark black. The leaves on the tree have no definite detail but are colored a lighter shade than the trunk. The leaves also are drawn in a different directional pattern than the trunk of the tree.

ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING It was hard to pin point the exact developmental stage that this child is in. According to

Brittain and Lowenfield (1970), children progress through stages of development in their artwork in predictable ways, with wide variations within an age norm or stage. Therefore, I concluded that Figure 1 is drawn by a child in the Preschematic Stage. The article by Brittan and Lowenfield provides the details that lead me to this conclusion. Firstly, the sizes of the objects drawn are not in proportion to one another. The girl standing next to the house is nearly as tall as it. Next, the objects are distorted to fit space. The tree is almost as wide as the house, which would not happen in real life. The child has stretched some of the objects drawn in order to fill up the full space of the paper. And lastly, the person depicted in the picture is looking at the viewer and smiling, and there is a distortion of parts. Brittain and Lowenfield also mention that clothes, hair, and other details are expected by the end of this stage. Due to these observations, I have concluded that this childs drawing in in the late phases of the Preschematic Stage: First Representational Attempts. From Figure 1, it can be inferred that this child is more than likely between the ages of four and seven. According to the Wilson (1982) article, this child is displaying characteristics of the simplicity principle. This concept states that a child will often depict an object in as simple and undifferentiated a way as conforms to the childs expectations for the depiction of the object. Meaning that the drawing put onto paper will be directly related to each childs individual idea of what is necessary to the picture. For example, in Figure 1, the person drawn is a fairly simple form of what a human looks like. There is a head, body, arms, and legs. However, this child determined that now it is necessary to add in facial features, hair, and clothing details. For those reasons this child is at the end of the Preschematic Stage and moving into the Schematic Stage. I would venture to predict that this child is closer to the age of 6 or 7.

ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING Conclusion

As a future elementary teacher I now can see and value the significance of what my students are drawing. The research and time taken to really get an understanding for this material are very meaningful. I no longer see childrens art as nonsensical or unskilled, but as a progression in their understanding of art literacy. There are so many levels of understanding that students can be on, and it is important that as a teacher you are familiar with any level that your student may be on, no matter what the subject. You must understand how your students develop artistically in order to be able to choose age-appropriate material and teaching strategies for your lessons. Stage theories of development describe passage from one stage to another, and explain the majority of children progress in a similar way through a developmental sequence (Luehrman & Unrath, 2006, p. 6). As a teacher, when you have familiarized yourself on a first hand basis and can construct and validate your knowledge of students developmental stories, then you are truly on your way to being a well-rounded elementary teacher. It is highly significant in the classroom to recognize and assess the level of artistic literacy that my students are on. As a teacher it is my job to nurture and challenge my students abilities in art, writing, science, and all subjects. I must prepare my students for all situations that they will run into on their way through life. I hope to provide all my students with a full array of capabilities, right at their fingertips.

ANALYZING AND RESEARCHING A CHILDS DRAWING References Brittain, W.L. & V. Lowenfeld. (1970) Creative and Mental Growth. New York, N.Y. MacMiliian Co. pgs 474-479. Erickson, M., & Young, B. (1996). What every educator should (but maybe doesnt) know. School Arts, 96(2), 40-42. Luehrman, M., & Unrath, K. (2006). Making theories of childrens artistic development meaningful for pre-service teachers. Art Education, 59(3), 6-12. Pink, D. (2005). A whole new mind. New York: Riverhead Books. Wilson, M., & Wilson, B. (1982). Teaching children to draw. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: PrenticeHall.