The document discusses the stages of children's artistic development, emphasizing that children should not be inhibited during art creation. It highlights the importance of providing appropriate materials and experiences to stimulate creativity as children progress from scribbling to representational art. The document also underscores the necessity of allowing personal expression and exploration in various artistic activities, while adapting to children's changing preferences and skills as they grow.

1. f
tr
Matiyntion
Af uo point should * child be inhibitEd, criticr'zed or carr*ctsd
while creating art during
any stagB of his develOp-rnffit. Usually in the first sfages of
scribbling na special murtivati*n is
needed ercept to provide the child with the propei materials and
the incouragement to go ahe*d
with the activity"
The child's owa experiences are ferrile topics th*t can motivst€
aud excite them in an
activities. Class field trips, stories from books, personal
experiences etc. shoutd be discussed
before en art Isst&r to help the child to draw &orn his own
visitr:r, and thus enjoy and learn
during the art lesson.
Art Mstsrt&I$
The best mgerifils for thic ctege are simple and easy to
mardputrate, fat hlack crdr3rors $r
martcers, l tnx 18o (or smaller) urhite papar, white c,hatk cn
btack ppet or a chalkboard. t do not
recornmend the use offiuger pairts f,or shildreu ofany age"
Childrcn do ntrt learn to use tools, in
this case a pnintbrush, nor doe* fingrr paiut eiuourages the
manipul*tion of pint TJtc finger
p*iut disrracts t?re children *om the p*intins process, while

2. they soil ewrything witkin ttreir
reach, the paiating a*ivity is fur.goten
Paints shouid be &ick teffipera or poster Fint$ with largs white
paper and round rned.ium
sized brush€s. Play dough, or essy to form modeling clay ers
wanderRrl in the derrelapmerrt of
fine ft$d gross nnotor cosrdinstion- Occasion*l use of coilage
materi*ls frarn rand*m *trup.u
{NOT FRECUT SHAPES) can add fun ard iuvolvement in
cutting and pastin$ Stencils can be
useful if }imited to the child manipul*ti*g and learnirrg how to
us* ths stensil.
Allcw the childrrr tG cut their osrn shaper rsrng safety scisssrs.
Tircy will dcrive purs
enjoyme:rt &om this actrttyand ehow greatpride in
tfuliraclriwem*nr C*tiry with scjssors can
i*v'olvE a child cornplctely in his discovery in th* use of a toal.
A child's fire mator caordinatiorr
cax develop rapidly through the ttustery cf cutting p&F€r. Some
ehildrec ryill nst pos*ess the
g CIss rnotor ccordi*ction to cve!! hold a pir of sciss+a,
lmw€ver tean:rg peper inta shapes c*r:
fuIfill fhe childs aeed to maripulate pper inta shapes of tris
orant de*iga.
- -
A di&rent mode ofdrawing has begun- the conscious creatian cf
furm. From the
disordered scribbling, to naming the scribbles arw €he ehild hes
developed s lyrf,y to represerr
for*- {r: scntb}iug the child was mainly intere*led in
kinesthetie activily, now he is invslved in
represe*ting the rrrcdd araurd him"

3. A chil.d's {irstrtpresertatianal a$empts gr*rv directly from
symbols the child was usiug
duriag the scribfoling stage. The circles and loagitudinai lines
wiil cone tagether ts forsh I
p*rs$c. Uwally tlte child's {irsi represerrtatienal syrnbel is a
reaa. T}rc ma"l is typicatriy drarc
with a circle fior a he*d urd two vertical trines as arms legs or a
bcdy. At this stegs s child is
cstlstarttl}f se*rehing fcr new co*ce$ls, so wla'le the "fira$" is
always rf primary impwtanc* it,s
forrt n**y cha*ge m*ny times.
The constant searching f*r new csnceFt$ will cofltinue until
about age ?. By this time the
i*dividuai peseru or "scfutffa' will begiu tc appe*r. The child is
iavolved in disccveri*g his oum
patterns, whieh rvili at times translate intc direct and irn*rediatr
rep*sent$ions of places and
flvents" A child's fselings can have profound effect upcn his e.fi
c.r€etion. The msre stimulatiag a
child's expetre$ces the itare dramatic and excitiag his artwork
wll bs. ?he ckil6 discovcrs t!:ere
is * relationsidp be*wean his drarru"ings aad his oi.rts:dc
experiences
When we investigate the artistic products of these twotypes in
their pure forms we find
that the "visual type " starts frqm his environmen! that he fsls ss
spstatoli and that his
intermediflries forexpu,ience are mainly the eyes. The "haptic
$/tr)s", is primarily concerned

4. with his onz body $ensation and the subjective experiences iu
whish he feels emotionally
involved.
A visually mindsd p€rsou would be disturbed and inhibited ifhe
were to be stimul*ted
oniy by mean$ of haptic impressions, that is, if he were rcked
not to use sight but to oriert
trlmsetf o*y by merns oftouch, bodily feelings, n:uscul*r
activities and kinesthetic fusiotrs. T.his
much is ciear fro*r researelL but what is rot obvious is
that'o$€sitg" may also becgme an
inhibitory factor when forced upfli an individual rvho des not
$se his visual experiences for
cre*tive work
Most peepie tend ts fatl betweeu thase two extffiie typss.
Investigations havs shoum
only a few individuels hav* equal *mouals of visual and haptic
predispo*ition Seventy'five
p.rr*ot of people }rave an apprei*ble tendency toward s$e or
the ctkr What this tells us is that
a child with a uisuat type teudency wilt not benefit fror* a
lesson that is purel3r kinesthetic, and a
child with a ha6ic rype tendency will rot benefit fror* a purely
visud lesson.
Many art educators feel very rtlongly that there is no place in an
art prsgram for coloring
boaks or ncopy" te*sans. Tfoe devehpnent ard growtl, of

5. creative thinkerx in our society
depends upon altowing childre* to Ex?ress themselves in a
personal luan:ter. There is no feeling
of satisfaction fer a child when he do*s not know which pro.iect
is his on tlre rv*ll because "they
all laok alike. " A polished. *eat, coff type af art proj€ct will
cnly sstis& adr{ts and witrl meke
1fu Ehitd fe€i-in*gpgblE of urrti*g
*gpodn art" Engago the children ia tlreir own self- expression
ard valueble le*rning will k discavered in the cla*sroonn. lVe
can plan art lesssrs ta *timulate
all cfthe childs cre*tive potextial thro*gh right saunds,
msvetteilt, feclings" *nd person*l
experimes.
r
be *o value judgment placed on a child's artrvork- At this age
the child ad his pecrs p.
plenty ef v*lue judgrneqfs about one anothels work. An adult
only need ,*g;bA" --".f
vested i*thE work.
The pseudo-naturelistic sfage of dwelcpment is very aigerent
ttlan any of the prariorx
stages. Because wE are maitrly coneemed with eleme*tery arf
dweloprnent *i *lt briefly cover
this stage.

6. This is the period sf a childls development termed,
preadolescenl It is a time for seeking
greater independence form adults. There is rnare a*areness Sran
ever ofthe human fig*re and
the diffsrenees bstween boys end girts, A prreadalescent is no
longer a child but nat yCt an adult,
thus &e term child na loager applies. There is mcre interest in
{bfiowing the *croqdn and
establishing his plcce il society. The preadol€scent also has
developed r rtroog seuse {rf socjal
awareness ard the beginnings of a hslf-understosd and not
eutirely wetrsome change in status.
. During *is stage, for the first time. the attentior has to bE
shifted &om th* impo:tance of
the working prsc*ss ts an insrs,a$sd ernphasis on the final
produut. The {inal product becomes
more *ignificsut with incre*sirlg age. The pr+edolescent has a
critical awar$nes$ taurard their
imaginative a*ivity; rnany tlmes they lo*e fheir spont*neous
creative *hillty. An aetjve,
stimulatiag art program is nesessary to ksep studints invoived i*
the cr*ative proce$s.
The h*mrui figure takes on a predorninant role in the
pre*dolescent's artrrycrk. A
motvating rewardi*g afi le*so* is live model drawing" Studenx
can take turns beiag the mcdel",
thus feeliag* sefi$r of soaperatior and togetherness *lrU
clnssmates. Mumh are excellmt for
wcrking i:r poups and learning appne*iatiou far the skilts *nd
ideac of others.
h{otivatia*
Any art motivation shoutrd rfress t*e individual's own
oontributirn. At this sfage of

7. deveiapm**i it is imporiani io rei*f:orce individuafisiic
thinking. Ji.r: art prsgrffn th&t} priariariiy
ccacenred with pmductioils mey:r:im rntirdy one of the basic
reasons for the existence of a* in
a scksol pro8rars, that is- the pers*a*l invdvement of an
individr:*l and the opportrrnity fur a
depth cf rci &expression
Materiah
All of the materials, whicb the child ha* trsed dwing each stage
of developrnert, ure
apprapriate at tkis sagt. Tha differease is *let now the waythe
child uses the matsriets wil
cha:rge- Tect'rxical prcfrciency ha* improved encugir thet the
*hild rvill find new liays to use
tle$e materials" More sophisticated materjals c&n no$,r be
inuudueed sueh *s, ruater colars, ail
paints, draftiag *upplies amd rulers.
Ths B*velapruent sf Tws Crestire Type*
Samethi$g very'interesting sccur$ during ahe ereative prscess
that reseerches don,t yet
*rlly tn&rstand This is the differext way$ in **ric.h hurna*s
nreate. Hspeci*lly during childhaod
ory cen observe the approach that * child tekes when designing
* picture or tluee-dimensicnal
object" Sar*e children witl produce rather uatur*lis*c *hjects
*"hii* otheru wilt tend towards a
more cbstract depicticr:- T}wse rrv+ apprceches ar*
te**ed,'vts$&I", and'haptic."

8. The schema is no longer adequate to represefi the humau figure
during the gang age. The
corcept ofthe kurnan figure as expressed duringthe schefiratic
rage will give way to
differEntiation between male*rd female andmuch more detail
will appmr. This is the stag$
wheu the base lines will no lcrrger sufficiently express their
understanding of the norld. Th*
change from single base line to the discavery +f the plane is
usually a mpid one. We also fird
thaf the sL7line is no longer drawn ecrsss the top ofthe page but
now extends ail the w*y dowtl
to tha horizsn- He has not yet developed a conscious visusl
perception of depth, but he has taken
the first steps toumrd such awarene$s" The child wiil begin
o'rerlapping objects ts show their
relatioaship to on6 anoths in space.
At this stegs the child is becoming sensitive to the qualities of a
material. It is of great
importance, tlrat chitdren be given the oppo,rtuniry ta
irnprovise i:rdependently. There is a greater
ability ts use tools and multi-rnedia materials. The emphasis
slrould be on the process of
manipulating and exploring the material aad aol upon achieving
a "nice lookingn frnished
prcduct. Boys and girls will slso lrsve a prefersree of materials
thal tkey want to wcrk with. Ask
thern whatthey sf,e interestsd in wo*irrg with. Provide encugh
variety to involve all ofthe
chil&e,n ir a creative eujoyeble srt {ctirrity.

9. l$fotivation
M.otiv*tios dwing this period must sffiss the rewly discovered
sacial i*dependeace in orderto
glve the ehild e feeling of self-esteern. An art experience must
gile him an opportu*ity to
express thc growing awareness of seld and ta $stisfl/ a new
curiosity ftr the envirsnms$t. It must
alsa inspire tle chitrd to us* the.nemrly found method$ of group
cooperation as beneficial means
for achieviag results. Grcup projscts *re best suited to this &gE
grsup. lrlany experiences can
morivate a group of children ta work oo a cooperative project
Allow the children to provide
some directiou as to their intercst as individmls anC ir: gro*p
si*utiocs
lf,fotarillc
$ome cft&e materiel* the chitrd has usod during previo*s
BtEI€s of dcveloplent can seem
"babyisho to the gang age child. The chiid now has greater
control ov'er th* art materials so will
preffr a variety of m*erials urhich witl enable him to become
famili*r with new 11/ay$ ta
ccrabilro materials. If the child bas experieime i* the use of
basi.c art materiatrs, tlrEn he will frnd
rew wsys to expre$s his ideas ar:d slrorv his masteiy of the
medjuru. Respect far the childk
persan*l expre*sion is very irnportant at this stage, for ert can
be a valurble medium forthe child
ts exsres$ how he feels abor* himsel{, and kis environment,
Now tke child is ready to put his theugfuts and ideas, feelings
aud reactions into a visual

10. expressive fcrm. Craff work can l*nd itself,tc this child's need
to explore new mxterials and
fulfrli their de*ires tc make things. Care shsulC be take* rvhen
choesing cra$ tulaterj*is f*r a
children's art program" Many craft projerts are "busy work"
wlich require little creetivity a*d ere
nct fulfilling the child's uerd to "do their own thing." A
selectian of wao{ papicr-r*Schd, cloth,
buttous, l*ce, cardi:o*rd boxes; sffiws, colarcd papsr, etc. can
be saved and *rade available to
the childrer.
The ability ta break away &om the scheme and to re*og:rize
particul*r details connect+d
with the self and with the environrnect is on of the
characteristic of this agc. Childrca betr+een
ages 9-l I are mors observa*t of'their ervironment snd their
intcro*t irr natue ca* be sean in their
collection ofthings" Tlrey see thiags through their own
experiences, &nd assume this reality is the
rvay things really are. We cafl s€e that nat*alisrr is not the
ultirxste gc*l of this nge, becailse
thero is usually *s afiempt tc shaw natural colcr$, light effec*,
fslds af clath etc. There should
ohjests in the child's schenna will be placed. The "base line", is
just that, a line pl*ced on ttx
bottom of the p*per by the child, ofl top of ufrrich everything is
drawn"

11. At the schematic stage of develapmen{ the chi}d has nat
developed a$ &wers$rss of the
representation of a three dirnensional $rality of space. We ,ind
tlrat the schema is usually a
representation of two dirnensicrs" The biggest discovery is th*t
there is a definite order in spatial
relationshipa. The space schema is entirely alstract aad h*s anly
an indirect comection with
nature, as *dalts know it. Another interesting visual way e child
represents objects is to shaw the
insides af the cbjects as X-ray pictures. Hb depicx the inside of
a building or structure
simulkneously with. the outside. A ehild n:lsy €ven drrw the
insides of a humsn while shcwing
the ou*ide audthe spco arouadthemaa.
Motivation
Motivation at thi* $tege mu$t create an atnosphere iu whict the
c&ild's consciosness of
being a part afthe esviro&ment is stinrulaad. In the saflrs way
we need to stimulate a grea€r
ar+ar€rlc$s of the *ctitr*s and fi,raetions afthe hup:an figure.
The inclruion ofactions in an
arderly rpace concept *'ill k af greatest significance. Our
motivation could be charactcrirtd by
the words: we, actior, and where.
It is imporxnt in a'rry motivatian that each ehild is pexoually
involved. Ther,e should be a
wide range if trpics so a ehjld has ths opporunity to identify
with his owu particularfutsresfs:
'-Playi*g at Re*ss with My Class", *Fl*ying Ball with My
Frieuds", 'nVi$iting the Zso With My
Famiiy" etc.

12. Ms&ris$s
Materials used by children at thi* stage sh+atd bc tks same as
those used in previaus
rtag*s, witb the additi*n of printing urcavirg and perhap*
ufcund obj'eets' seulpnre m*terixls.
The Darnry:fure- R.enlisr4: 9-11 years
One cfthc oufstanding charscteristics of this stage is th*t the
ckild reeliues ?re is prt of c
society*a society ofpers. This is the stage where childreu are
lemning tc wor* with groups of
other chil&e* ard cooperete much ss th*y will in adult life. T1r
disc<rvery of sharing similar
interests, se$rets, md the pleasxe of doing &ings together, are
all very firadax,tenel Thse is a
growing aw&rea$E$ that one can do more in I groxp than slone"
This age is the time cf gaup's er
ga$gs. The word fasg is n$t osed negatively here. The refersnee
is towards hanpng out with
&ie*ds in groups.This ag* shows a:r i*creasisg intuest in
*souiel independence" from ad$:t
inierference, learning ab*::t sc*ial stru$rrrs.$ i* a prs*nal w*y.
At this age the child is beceming m$re awsre and senxitive tc
his euvironrrrent. HE is
becoming mare criticel of himself end othss. !{e may hide his
drawinp &am inquisitive adults
who may make seme remark abotlt their effarts. Studies have
shcvra that there is a surprising
similarity betweer: drawings by chitdrerr sf thi$ age and the
dr*wings of untreined adults.
Childrea ef &is age have a $$sng dcsire to produce n*turalistic
or photographi*nlly real

13. pictures. Al*ough their experiences h*ve rnuch do with their
$tistic expression theyare e*sily
*ustrated if their wark dcss aot appear the w*y they think it
should- Be patient with children x
this age, they are thcir own worst critics, adult futerf,ere$ce ccn
only cause more &ustrstion in the
child.
The child in the pre-schematic stage is developing
understanding of spatial rsl*tioaships"
fhe child may always appear irl the center of the picture, x,hile
objects seem to flo*t rouud in
spacc. This is brcause the chitrd is just leaming to pcrceive bis
place in the wodd round bim,
The size of objects in a child's picture may appearvsry different
than what they *re in
reality. This is because the child places imponant odects larger
on the picturc thet unimporta*t
objects" For example, very large hands are commonamong
children when they are drawing
pictures of themselves invslved iu a haads-on activify
Motivrtion
Aay motivation at this stage should stafi with the child himself"
The child must feel art
ro be an imp*rtent stimulating experie*rc. A child should
becolne involved in and ideatified
with his art experiences. BeEome iavolved with the childreu but
le,t t$ern work oa their own
level, ard in their c$n wsy. Be sire that you find meaning asd
excitement in the art experiencc,

14. with loe of encouragcnent aad positivc cnergy for the chil&an
FItt*rielx
Since the rhild at this age is excited by his abitity to r€Fres€nt
*'hat is mtaningftI to him,
any afl experie,nce sho$ld prsridr rh* opp*rtunfu for dcvelcping
msstery of the matffial itself.
Since thc PRSCESS OF CREATION IS MORE IMPCIRTANT
TI{AN TI{E PR*DUCT sn *rt
material shCIuld be setected tbet meets the needs of the r€e
group for which it ww planned'
Consfaa{y changing materisls or usiag cilte things in arl art
projectcan undennine the integrity
.ofttre child's..a*istic *xpressious. Good quality crayorls sn
l2*X18" lvhite p*per, thick ternprr
or poster paint with a rotmd medium sieed bristle brush, clay,
nnarkers, *ollnge n:aterialq *re aJI
excellent art materials far this flge group.
The impo:t*nce of*l* schrnn* can only *e friily re*Iieed ivhen
r+t understand the child's
desire f*r a definite symbol, or sehema of a real cbjecr
Although auy drawing could be called a
schen:a, here wE will refer io scherns &s a coflcept which a
child arrivss at w"hich he repeats egnin
*nd agdn whex no intentional experience influences him. These
coaeepts are highly
individualized For scrae childrEn ttrey may be very intricate
while for o&ers the scherna may be
a siruplified synabol. The sshema$ are as varied as tire chil&en
themselves arc. The schema of en

15. object is the c*ncept at which &e child has firslly arriv*d" aud
it reprerynts ths child's sctive
knowledge of the sbj€t.
At ahext age sevetl tke dravrirrg of,c huraan figure should be a
recogniz*hle symbcl.
Usualiy *tl body parts are apparent and *lothing, even f*shians
arf; present. Fecial fecfi$cs are
repre*ented frcrn very' simple to the i*chisio:r of eyei*shes,
canings a;rd vnrious detsils- i{an*s
and feet become imporent in rhe human fonn, but are not always
prg$ent in every drawing.
Sometimes oval$, triangles, $quare$ circles, rectangles, or
irregular *hapes are used as schema for
the bcdy, althougtr sll kin& of shapes cs& represetrt aspects of
a human figure.
In the human schema the child is not attempting to cCIpy e
visu* fona. The child arrives
at a conceg by a contbinatioa *f many factors, his awareiless of
his own fuelings, and his
dev*lop*reut of perr*ptual sensitivities" The child's human
schema ea:r give us a *Iue as t$ ths
dev*loprnent of the individurl.
A*other schema that becomcs epperent at this pcint in a child's
developnrent is the "space
schema". The chjld finds new relationships betrveen hjmself and
ottrer objects. No longer do
objectx sseri ts fla*t a:ound i* sp**e in a child's srtrvork. N+w
there is a'baseline'* *:t whi*h all