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Why Children Draw
May 20, 2016
Every child deserves a champion – an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be.
-Dr. Rita Pierson (1951-2013), Educator
-Dr. Rita Pierson (1951-2013), Educator
In his article in the May 2016 issue of Exchange, "Children Draw the World to Know the World," Jinan k.b., the force behind the Re-imagining Schools at a school near Pune, India, offered this observation:
"Drawing is the playing that children do on two-dimensional space, which is where modern humans are located most of the time. In the three-dimensional space, that is in the real world where children play, again, provided they have their way. But when they are forced into the two-dimensional world of the book, they draw. Drawing comes naturally to children, unlike writing. They draw on the wall, paper, floor, even on water, and on any such space where children can get their hold. They draw with whatever they can get hold of. Apart from pen and pencil, their own fingers come to help while drawing on the plate, misty windows, and so on. Through the process of drawing, children are able to understand how the world looks — the form, what happens around them, both in the natural world and the social world. The reason, rules, what, and how children draw are dictated by biology or nature or life, provided we don’t interfere. The same is the case with play."
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Comments (5)
Displaying All 5 CommentsOMEP-USA
Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Calling attention to another drawing experience via Exchange: In the March/April 2016 issue is an article by Margo Greenwood and others, about the Images of Rights: Children's Perspectives Project introduced by the World Forum Foundation's Working Group on Children's Rights. It asks for children's drawings of rights to be submitted and posted on the WFF website. We urge readers to participate in the project. This is a great parallel article--thanks, Exchange!
Shrewsbury, New jersey, United States
Carolina Rinaldi said a long time ago, "A drawing is an idea written down." Not sure if I have the quote exactly right but the concepts in this article certainly were expressed by her and all Reggiani. Glad to see it is still expressed and so well as in this article.
Pennsylvania, United States
Yes, let the children draw and express themselves and make sense of the world around them. Let them play for the same reasons. Why is the concept of letting children be children so hard for us? So much happens as the kids create and converse---they just need adults who care and take time with them. I agree with Francis ---stop making STEM something unnatural--children are always discovering, investigating, exploring ---bubbles, bugs, blocks--until we make it some prefab lesson that does not interest them in the least!
CSBC
Denver, CO, United States
Art used to be the foundation of our field. Sir Herbert Read, a famous British author, wrote an entire book on this idea, as did our friend John Dewey (Art as Experience). Some of us believe it should still be the foundation of ECE, and not STEM and not academic standards!
Shrewsbury, New jersey, United States
Carolina Rinaldi said a long time ago, "A drawing is an idea written down." Not sure if I have the quote exactly right but the concepts in this article certainly were expressed by her and all Reggiani. Glad to see it is still expressed and so well as in this article.
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