Art & self control
When children are allowed to let their creativity flow, and put their feelings into artwork, whether through visual arts, music, or performing, it helps them regulate their feelings and turn strong emotions into something beautiful or productive. Often, we hold negative emotions in, which can cause stress and anxiety. The creative arts allow us to transform these emotions into something physical and outside of ourselves. This often leads to feelings of relief, understanding, and self-control. We will look at different forms of art that help us to develop self-control in both children and adults.
Self-regulation is the ability to understand and manage your behaviors, feelings, and reactions to emotions and things around you. Kids need to develop this ability to help them become more independent and get along well with others. While self-regulation in kids starts from infancy, kids develop it most in the toddler stage and continue into adulthood. Visual art is a great tool for teaching kids/adults about emotions and helping them learn self-regulation. We learn how to self-regulate over time. Along the way, we find ways that can help us, such as meditation, exercise, yoga, deep breathing, soft music, and more. However, engaging in various forms of visual arts is a powerful method for building and sustaining self-regulation. Activities like drawing mandalas or painting can put us into a state of “flow,” during which our minds enter a state of consciousness much like meditation. This leads to the relaxation of both mind and body. During this state, our brains release neurotransmitters that give us feelings of calm, euphoria, pleasure, and well-being. Engaging in the craft activities involves making shapes and patterns with papers, folding, cutting, and pasting which is a whole-body experience. We utilize numerous physical and cognitive functions while engaging with the kinesthetic-sensory qualities of art. Working with play dough, kneading, and rolling out shapes from clay, the process of making sculptures allows multiple parts of our brain to work in unison, connecting neural networks throughout our brain. These neural networks can then be utilized in the future, allowing for quicker and more efficient transmissions. The faster our brains work, the faster they can self-regulate. Art classes also include mindful exercises, color practices, and using imaginative skills which help in sufficient development of self-regulation.
Art and craft are not just fun activities for kids but a great way to develop self-regulation for kids. It helps a child to learn how to observe, plan and make the right decisions, to be disciplined and inculcate good values about art and culture in life. Enrolling in art classes also ensures healthy brain development, positive use of time, and mindfulness in life. These skills help them to understand themselves and the world around them which sustains self-regulation and control from early childhood years.
Let your child develop his/her self-regulation skills, by joining our art classes and learning from the best instructors!
