Art is an important aspect of learning in early childhood education and must be carefully designed to enhance their artistic development and foster an appreciation of the beauty in their world. Art enriches the lives of all preschoolers and toddlers by giving them experiences to find meaning about themselves and the world around them.
“From the moment the child discovers what it looks and feels like to put lines on paper, he has found something he will never lose, he has found art” – R. Kellogg 1969.
Rhoda Kellogg has studied 100,000 drawings of young children drawn with pencil, pen, crayon, or brush, and this extensive study has significantly added to our understanding of children’s artistic development. She was particularly interested in the scribbling of young children and found that children progress from scribbling to drawing using a spontaneous, built-in method of self-learning and would continue until the children were 5 years old and only in later years. stages of development in which children’s art can be trained and guided by an adult.
Kellogg also identified several symbols that have been drawn by children from various cultures. The mandala design, which is a simple circle or square divided by intersecting lines, is produced by children in different parts of the world. Kellogg also found that preschoolers and toddlers, unlike older children, are not concerned with making their artwork look good or look like real things, but instead move their hands to express a feeling that it arises from within and they are enchanted by the movement and scribbles it produces. With this knowledge in mind, it is important not to force them to look at physical objects and try to copy them, but to allow them to experiment, to create in their own unique way, thus giving them the opportunity to express their own ideas and feelings.
The stages of artistic development are the doodle stage, the basic form stage, and the pictorial stage. Although there is a predictable pattern to their development, preschoolers and toddlers move through the levels in different ways and at their own pace. These stages can help parents or teachers work with young children and provide guidelines for planning for a specific group of children.
Kellogg’s developmental stages
1. Scribble Stage
These are the first drawings of small children. They are simple, random marks, made for the joy of scribbling. During this stage, young children are not concerned with trying to draw to represent anything, but instead enjoy the process of scribbling on paper.
2. Basic Shape Stage
Children begin to draw simple lines and shapes. Kellogg identified several universal symbols used by children around the world. These include the mandala, the sun, stairs, spirals, wavy lines, and rainbows. These symbols were used to communicate and were the beginnings of writing. Children at this stage continue to draw for pleasure.
3. Pictorial stage
During this stage, children use the shapes from stage 2 to draw symbolic representations of real people and things like houses, trees, and windows. They begin to identify their pictures, tell related stories, and extend their pictures to include new meaning and understanding.
Positive and appropriate parenting of preschool-age children and young children beginning artistic endeavors can provide a strong foundation for later development and enjoyment of artistic experiences.