News Release - Art in the Classroom

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After nearly 30 years of publishing, Evan-Moor Educational Publishers still recognizes the value and importance of art instruction

The company whose first book was Art Moves the Basics Along continues to publish quality materials that engage students in the creation of art.

MONTEREY, CALIF. (August 15, 2008) - Why is art education important? Depending on whom you ask, you'll get a lot of different answers. Some will tell you it's because creative work improves overall achievement and raises test scores. Others will mention the development of 21st-century skills and the need to produce a more competitive, innovative workforce. Then there are those who say we should study and practice art for art's sake; that art has an intrinsic value beyond what can be measured by test scores and achievement.

So who's right? They all are, of course.

"When children learn about art, they're not just learning about line and symmetry or color and form," says Joy Evans, publisher and co-founder of Evan-Moor Educational Publishers. "They're learning about creativity, exploration, and innovation. They're learning habits of mind that they'll put to use in all academic areas and life itself."

And she should know. Before creating Evan-Moor along with her brother, Bill, and close friend Jo Ellen Moore, Joy taught elementary school for fifteen years in California, as well as overseas. She also enjoyed seven years as a librarian before transitioning out of teaching to devote herself full time to publishing.

Since then, Joy has used her experience in the classroom to write and edit over 450 books, including art titles such as Art for All Seasons, Artworks for Kids, and Evan-Moor's best-selling title, How to Teach Art to Children.

While construction paper, crayons, popsicle sticks, and paintbrushes may not seem like the kinds of tools students need to develop critical skills for today's world, it may surprise you how much a student can learn from creating a collage, a piece of pottery, or a simple painting of a flower.

According to research, art instruction helps to develop a specialized group of thinking skills that aren't often addressed in other curriculum areas. These skills include visual-spatial abilities, reflection, self-evaluation, originality, and experimentation?skills that are becoming more important than ever in today's rapidly changing, technology-based environment.

"When we at Evan-Moor create materials for any subject—be it math, reading, science, social studies, or the arts—we craft lessons and activities in a way that encourages genuine thinking and exploration. That encourages real learning," says Joy. "Integrating art into a lesson, any kind of lesson, is a great way to get students truly absorbed in the skills they're studying."

Looking through Evan-Moor's extensive list of titles, it isn't hard to find activities that use art to engage students in skills practice across the curriculum.

For example, in Evan-Moor's popular social studies series History Pockets, students create a shield out of paper plates to learn about life in Ancient Greece, a bracelet to explore the meaning behind Egyptian symbols, and a 3-D spinning compass to learn about explorers Sir Francis Drake, Henry Hudson, and James Cook. Likewise, the literature series How to Report on Books introduces story characters by asking students to create a main-character mobile, explains the elements of setting with a pop-up picture project, and helps students retell main events through drawing key moments of a story.

Whether it's solving division facts to complete a color-by-number picture, using a drawing of a frog to inspire a writing response, or creating a magazine collage to learn about the parts of the body, art projects help to bring energy and excitement to the lessons in some of Evan-Moor's most popular books.

"Motivation is a key factor in learning," says Joy, "and one of the things I love most about our books, especially our art books, is that the students love them, too."

And students aren't the only ones. Many teachers view the art books as a solution to the problem of not having time to fit art into the basic curriculum.

"I wish I had the time to come up with creative art projects on my own, but I don't," says Lisa Axelrod, a special education teacher in Monterey, CA. "How to Teach Art to Children is one of my favorite resources because it does it all for me."

As the beginning of a new school year draws near, and teachers everywhere are busy preparing to go back to the classroom—creating lesson plans for important instruction in math, reading, science, and social studies—it's important not to forget the arts.

"There's so much value in art instruction," explains Joy, "because there's no wrong way to create art. All students, even those who struggle in other areas, can do well and even excel in the arts. It gives them a sense of pride that carries over to other subject areas. That allows them to approach all learning situations with a little more enthusiasm and confidence because they know they have it within them to succeed."

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For more information contact:
Megan Murray
Marketing Communications Coordinator
Phone: 831-649-5901 ext. 116
Email: meganm@evan-moor.com