Dear Parents and Fellow Educators,
This thematic unit revolves around the theme of insects and has been developed for kindergarten students. Though the theme of insects is very specific, this theme is appropriate for kindergarten students as it falls into the category of biology. This subject is very prevalent in the science standards that have been developed for kindergarten. Additionally, involving living things such as insects into all subjects of education promotes students' care for the environment and all of the living organisms that inhabit it. Though this unit focuses on learning about insects throughout all four lessons, it is important for students to frequently learn about animals, plants, and insects which are all important parts of our environment as a whole. Teaching children to become conscious of our environment and all livings makes student more aware of our role in the environment and the importance of valuing all living things.
Throughout each of the four lessons included in this thematic unit, one of the four types of art is integrated into the lesson. Arts integration is extremely important as it has been proved to benefit children in a number of ways. Having access to the arts gives students an outlet to release stress, energy, and emotion in a positive way and may reach students that are not being reached in traditional ways. Studies prove that providing children with access to the arts both embedded in and outside of their traditional academic curriculum, show gains math, reading, cognitive ability, critical thinking, and verbal skill. Gains in these areas can be applied to all areas of education and significantly benefit students. Studies looking at students coming from homes of low socioeconomic status explain that providing access to art education for students helps to lesson the achievement gap between these students and their peers who may have been provided with more opportunities (Smith). Though it is evident that having access to explicit arts instruction in schools is important, the arts can be easily incorporated into every academic subject. Incorporating the arts into the academic curriculum helps to enhance lessons, engage students, and help students make more concrete connections to material. It is extremely vital that moving forward, arts integration becomes prevalent in schools and educators develop strategies for incorporating the arts into the academic curriculum.
Smith, F. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/arts-music-curriculum-child-development
This thematic unit revolves around the theme of insects and has been developed for kindergarten students. Though the theme of insects is very specific, this theme is appropriate for kindergarten students as it falls into the category of biology. This subject is very prevalent in the science standards that have been developed for kindergarten. Additionally, involving living things such as insects into all subjects of education promotes students' care for the environment and all of the living organisms that inhabit it. Though this unit focuses on learning about insects throughout all four lessons, it is important for students to frequently learn about animals, plants, and insects which are all important parts of our environment as a whole. Teaching children to become conscious of our environment and all livings makes student more aware of our role in the environment and the importance of valuing all living things.
Throughout each of the four lessons included in this thematic unit, one of the four types of art is integrated into the lesson. Arts integration is extremely important as it has been proved to benefit children in a number of ways. Having access to the arts gives students an outlet to release stress, energy, and emotion in a positive way and may reach students that are not being reached in traditional ways. Studies prove that providing children with access to the arts both embedded in and outside of their traditional academic curriculum, show gains math, reading, cognitive ability, critical thinking, and verbal skill. Gains in these areas can be applied to all areas of education and significantly benefit students. Studies looking at students coming from homes of low socioeconomic status explain that providing access to art education for students helps to lesson the achievement gap between these students and their peers who may have been provided with more opportunities (Smith). Though it is evident that having access to explicit arts instruction in schools is important, the arts can be easily incorporated into every academic subject. Incorporating the arts into the academic curriculum helps to enhance lessons, engage students, and help students make more concrete connections to material. It is extremely vital that moving forward, arts integration becomes prevalent in schools and educators develop strategies for incorporating the arts into the academic curriculum.
Smith, F. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/arts-music-curriculum-child-development