Online Art Club for Myanmar children

Online Art Club for Myanmar children

   Self-expression is critical to developing a child's identity, confidence, and sense of belonging to the world. It opens children's minds and allows them to form thoughts and ideas that can surprise them. Self-expression also helps children positively communicate their feelings. It promotes children's health and well-being by allowing them to express their feelings, likes, and dislikes constructively. Based on children's emotional development helps them learn about teamwork and caring for others.

  Art is a medium in which children can freely express themselves and explore their strengths and interests. As children express themselves through art, they gradually test different possibilities and work through challenges. Art enables them to find solutions to problems. They often encounter unexpected challenges when working with art materials, reading, watching, or listening to stories, and experimenting with different ideas while finding solutions to improve their problem-solving skills.
The arts help children improve their social-emotional skills and develop positive mental health. They feel good when they make something or even play a role. They learn the concept of sharing and take turns thanking each other for their efforts. When young children try to grab a brush, squeeze paints, or cut a piece of paper in a controlled way, they explore their dexterity and develop fine motor skills.

 According to Chapman (1978), art allows children to express their ideas and develop their creativity and imagination. It is also argued that art allows opportunities for personal development as it enables children to gain confidence and promotes feelings of self-worth (Buxton, 2014; Hallam, 2014; Hewitt, 2014). Eisner (1999) comments that when done well, students in the arts are deeply engaged, their sensibilities refined, their imagination promoted, the development of technical skills fostered, and they are encouraged to appraise the quality of their own work and to make plans for the future. 

​In particular, painting is a medium for children to express experiences or emotions that cannot be expressed in words. A child may draw and paint randomly, but it is a meaningful work of art for the child. They can experiment with creating and exploring through self-expression and creativity. Acquiring skills, completing art projects, and learning to express themselves in new ways help children gain confidence and perseverance. These things also help children develop positive emotional reactions to stressful situations.

To help children constructively express their feelings and turn them into art, the case study will carry out the following activities(Dr. Sue King-Smith, 2020):

* Collect various tactile materials and images. Create collages of textures, colors, and images that feel calm and happy to help to find their favorite colors and textures.
* Use various materials to create images of imaginary (or real) safe places. Are there other people out there? Or a pet? Is it inside or outside? What is it made of? Picture yourself in it.
* Draw or create images of superheroes. What are your superpowers?
* Track around your hand. Then fill it with images of all the things that help you feel better when you're sad or angry.
* Draw a self-portrait in the center of the page. Then surround yourself with photos of your strengths and everything you like about yourself.

​Source: 

* Lauren Martin, 2014, "Ten Reasons Why the Arts in Education Matter to Children.”
* The Jenny Evolution, 2016, "What are the Benefits of Arts & Crafts for Kids?"
* Harvard University Center on the Development Child, 2018, “Executive Functions and Self-Regulation.”
* Aurora Early Childcare Center, 2020, "Promoting self-expression through the arts - instilling in children a love of lifelong learning."
* Dr. Sue King-Smith, 2020, " Helping children express emotions through art."
* Jordan Pepper, 2021, “Online art education: Teaching through a pandemic.”James Madison University.