·         teach kids to be more tolerant and open.

·         allow kids to express themselves creatively.

·         promote individuality, bolster self-confidence, and improve overall academic performance.

·        can help troubled youth, providing an alternative to delinquent behavior and truancy while providing an improved attitude towards school.

 

An impressive 89% of Americans believe that arts education is important enough to be taught in schools, but the sad truth is, your kids spend more time at their lockers than in arts classes. Read the facts on how arts education helps kids do better.

 

DID YOU KNOW?

Young people who participate in the arts for at least three hours on three days each week through at least one full year are:

·         4 times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement.

·         3 times more likely to be elected to class office within their schools.

·         4 times more likely to participate in a math and science fair.

·         3 times more likely to win an award for school attendance

·         4 times more likely to win an award for writing an essay or poem

 

Young artists, as compared with their peers, are likely to:

·         Improve kids’ overall academic performance.

·         Are likely to have higher test scores than those with little or no involvement

·         Attend music, art, and dance classes nearly three times as frequently

·         Participate in youth groups nearly four times as frequently

·         Read for pleasure nearly twice as often

·         Perform community service more than four times as often

·         Develop skills needed by the 21st century workforce: critical thinking, creative problem solving, effective communication, teamwork and more.

·         Allows kids to express themselves creatively and bolster their self-confidence.

·         Keep students engaged in school and less likely to drop out.

 Sources:

1.        (Living the Arts through Language + Learning: A Report on Community-based Youth Organizations, Shirley Brice Heath, Stanford University and Carnegie Foundation For the Advancement of Teaching, Americans for the Arts Monograph, November 1998)

2.        http://www.americansforthearts.org/public_awareness/default.asp