Teaching Integrated Arts in the Primary School

Book excerpt: First Published in 2000. This book reasserts the place of the arts - dance, drama, music and the visual arts - in the primary school curriculum at Reception and Key Stages 1 and 2. It acknowledges the time constraints in a crowded curriculum and stresses a common developmental approach to the different forms of creative and aesthetic expression. The arts are presented as the vital '4th R', integrated modes of learning alongside Reading, Writing and Arithmetic, where children can absorb and express ideas, feelings and attitudes. Supported by illustrations, examples of work, a glossary of terms, appendices of addresses for resource materials and further reading, the work will stimulate and give confidence as a course textbook for student teachers and as a professional handbook for practitioners, including arts coordinators, advisory teachers and artists working in educational settings. Clear guidance is given on the development of a personal, autonomous teaching style and on evaluating and monitoring children's progression in skill acquisition, creative production and critical response.