11.9: Engaging Families

Teachers can make the following suggestions to families to facilitate their support of the creative arts for their children:

• Try drawing, painting, and sculpture with the child at home.
• Embrace dramatic play at home. Provide props, costumes, space, and time.
• Show interest in their play and play with them.
• Turn on the music and move with their children.
• Incorporate dance and movement into everyday routines.
• Tap and clap to rhythm of songs and encourage children to do the same.
• Notice and talk about works of art seen and songs and music heard at home and in the community.
• Notice and talk about shapes and colors in works of art and in the environment, sounds heard, episodes of dramatic play
• Incorporate dramatic play into a variety of activities, such as reading and going on outings or trips.
• Bring the child to an art museum or areas in the community with public displays of art, community concerts, family-child music classes, community dance performances, and movement programs.
• Be open-minded and encouraging about works of art that are sent home from the preschool setting, children’s spontaneous musical performances, children’s dramatic play
• Share art, songs, music, and dance traditions or movement games from their homes.
• Donate materials that can be used in a variety of art experiences.
• Come to watch or participate in an art show, children’s dramatic experiences, or a parent-child dance event^[1]