Art is an important aspect of learning in early childhood education and should be carefully designed to enhance their artistic development and foster an appreciation of 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 that he will never lose, he has found art” – R. Kellogg 1969.
Rhoda Kellogg has studied 100,000 drawings by 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 young children’s scribbling and found that children progress from scribbling to drawing using a built-in, spontaneous method of self-learning and would continue until children were 5 years old and only in later years. developmental stages in which children’s art can be trained and guided by an adult.
Kellogg also identified various 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, aren’t concerned that their artworks look good or resemble real things, but instead move their hands to express a feeling that it comes from inside them and they are delighted with the movement and the scribbles that they produce. 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 scribble 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 Stages of Development
1. Doodle stage
These are the first drawings of young children. They are simple and random marks, made for the pleasure of drawing doodles. During this stage, young children are not concerned with trying to draw to represent anything, but rather enjoy the process of scribbling on paper.
2. Basic shape stage
Children begin to draw simple lines and shapes. Kellogg identified several universal symbols that are 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 beginning 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 drawings, tell related stories, and extend their drawings to include new meanings and understanding.
Positive and appropriate parenting of preschoolers and young children beginning artistic endeavors can provide a strong foundation for later development and enjoyment of artistic experiences.