Isn't my child getting enough art time in school?

Unfortunately, more and more schools are encouraging young children to move away from free expression during various art activities such as scribbling and painting. These same schools are moving toward tracing and coloring between the lines techniques.

The importance of scribbling is undervalued. Children who engage in plenty of scribbling at a young age develop better fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and creative confidence which is all needed in later schooling.

As children grow, they start to understand that what they create has a meaning and depending on what symbols they utilize in their pictures, these meaning may change. Understanding symbolic representation helps children grasp that letters and numbers signify something. Art and writing involve making symbols.