AcknowledgementsI am very grateful to the practitioner of the school who agreed to participate in this study and gave her time and effort to this intervention. I would like to thank the parents who gave their permission to include their children in this project. Special thanks to all the children who participated. It was a pleasure to work with you all. AbstractLiteracy as a social practice has a fundamental role in children's lives especially in the early years context, in which social interactions are in the centre of knowledge achievement. Several pieces of research investigate the positive contribution of the arts in children's literacy development in the early years settings. However, most of them focus on the aspect of emergent literacy and phonological awareness, with some indirect arguments about literacy as a social practice. Having this in mind and the importance of literacy as a social practice, this project was designed. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of the arts in the development of literacy as a social practice in the early years settings. The intervention used the 'Play and Learn through the Arts' (PLA) programme for a full school year in a case study with 5-6-year-old children in Greece. The outcomes were measured using authentic assessment techniques and a semi-structure interview. The findings showed the positive contribution of the arts in the development of literacy as a social practice in the early years setting.
Personal and social development is an important area which influences children's learning journey in all levels of education. Examining the impact of the arts in children's development, there are several studies that adopt this focus. However, the majority of them focuses either in primary or secondary education or in specific personal and social skills through a structured intervention, which is not compatible with the liberal context of the arts. Considering the importance of this area and the statement above, this research project was designed. The purpose of this paper was to examine the effects of a child-led art intervention in children's personal and social development in the early years settings. The intervention used the 'Play and Learn through the Arts' (PLA) programme for a full school year. The participants were from a case study of a Greek early years setting with 5-6-year-old children. Informed consent was obtained from all participants included in the study. The findings revealed a positive influence of the arts, and more specifically of the PLA, in children's personal and social skills.
Literacy is one of the most important areas of development in the early years settings. Several pieces of research examine the positive impact of the arts in children's literacy development. However, most of them are focusing on specific literacy skills and not in providing a holistic examination of literacy. In addition to this, they adapt a structured methodology, with pre-decided lesson plans, which is contradicting with the liberal character of the arts. Having this in mind along with the importance of literacy as an area of learning, this research project was designed with the purpose to examine the effects of the arts on children's holistic literacy development in the early years settings through a child-led approach. The 'Play and Learn through the Arts' (PLA) programme was used for a school year in a case study with 5-6-year-old children in Greece. The outcomes were measured using a mix-method approach. The findings showed the positive contribution of the PLA in children's literacy development.
Using different art forms to investigate the impact on children's involvement in literacy activities Much of the research into factors that affect children's school performance has focused on parental involvement rather than the nature of children's activities undertaken in school. More research is therefore needed to examine the kinds of activities that affect performance and, in particular, whether the degree of involvement children experience in those activities can affect school performance. Children in free play often choose to be involved in arts activities so the arts could be considered as a promising approach. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of 'Play and Learn through the Arts' program on children's involvement during literacy activities in five-six-year-old children. It was examined if the arts in general or a specific art form could contribute more to children's involvement in literacy activities. Children from four different settings participated in this study. To measure the outcome of the intervention the LIS-YC was used and items such as children's concentration, persistence and precision were measured. The findings were analyzed using a mixed method approach and showed significant benefits in all the items in children's levels of involvement in the arts group over the control group and no difference in effects among the different art forms.
in the research area of "Literacy skills in the early years settings". She has more than 10 years of professional experience as a head teacher in the Early Years Settings and more than 9 years in Higher Education as a Lecturer/Visiting Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies. She has been for 4 years the Program Leader in Education Department in Metropolitan College. Her research activity is focused on literacy, the arts, creativity and technology enhanced learning. She has participated in several research projects and published her research in International Conferences, Journals, edited books and monographs. She is the author of "When I play I learn… and I better understand" from Delta publications and of "Creativity in the era of New Technologies" from Kritiki publications. She has been a member in several Scientific Review Committees and organized several special sessions in International Conferences.
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