Διερεύνηση Της Ανάπτυξης Του Προφορικού Λόγου Και Της Δημιουργικής Σκέψης Των Παιδιών Προσχολικής Ηλικίας, Μέσα Από Διδακτικές Παρεμβάσεις Αξιοποίησης Της Εικαστικής Τέχνης

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of visual art to thedevelopment of oral language and creative thinking of toddlers in the context of a targeted teaching intervention in a kindergarten classroom in Athens. The pupils came in contact with artworks based on Perkins’ methodical art observation model. The intervention lasted for three months and involved 20 children (15 toddlers aged 5-years-old and 5 toddlers aged 4-years-old). Language skills and creative thinking were evaluated at the beginning and at the end of the intervention. Data was collected through group discussion, interviews and children’s personal artworks. The results showed that after the intervention, substantial changes were observed in both the language skills and creative thinking of the children. In particular, children’s narratives were better in structure and quality, vocabulary was richer, and more children participated in a discussion in comparison with the beginning of the intervention. In terms of creative thinking, a higher level of hypothesis was made, more ideas were produced, and mainly more visual works based on the observed works of art were produced by the children. This paper contributes to research into the development of oral language skills and creative thinking, highlighting the relationship between visual arts and the development of toddlers’ basic preschool skills.