Project Vs. Process Art

As a preschool teacher, I would love to see what the children create. The art center was always one of the busiest areas of the classroom, and the drying rack by the sink was almost always full. My co-teacher and I would always work hard to rotate items in and out of our art center to keep it interesting to the kids. Preschoolers do so much in their classrooms; from circle time to snack time, science centers to writing centers, there is always something to keep them busy. Art is one center that I find children enjoy the most, but do the benefits of art boil down to enjoyment alone? In this post, we will investigate the advantages of art education, the difference between project and process art, and the benefits of both types of art in the preschool classroom.

The Importance of Art in Education

During my fourth-grade year, because of some private circumstances, my mother and I decided that I should take a break from public school and homeschool for a while. My mom enrolled me in an online homeschooling program with a brilliant art education curriculum. It often integrated history into art projects. For example, I would be learning about Claude Monet’s life and what the world was like when he was alive. I would also learn about French Impressionism and how to adopt certain aspects of his art style. After learning this, I was tasked with creating something inspired by Monet’s art. This project not only gave me a way to express myself artistically and learn new techniques, but it also connected me to human history and helped me remember Monet and his significance. This experience is just one way that art has enriched my education as a child.  

Giving children opportunities to create improves their fine motor, cognitive, social, and emotional health. Children strengthen their hands as they grasp paint brushes and mold with clay. The more children strengthen their hands in this way, the easier it will be for them to pick up skills like writing, sewing, and typing as they grow. Children also profit cognitively from working on an artistic project. Diana Lee Santamaria, an educator and author states, “Through art, children are able to learn a variety of words—colors, shapes, materials, tools and ways to express in words what they made.” Children are always excited to share their creations with the adults who love them. Sharing their art allows them to practice broadening their vocabulary as they learn to describe their art and their process. Santamaria continues to say, “Art strengthens the understanding of shapes and patterns.” Santamaria teaches us that even the youngest children can understand basic mathematical principles by simply having a way to express themselves creatively. Jordan Jantz states, “Letting kids work on an art project can give them a relaxing outlet to constructively express themselves.” Therefore, giving children a quiet place to paint or color a picture can help them constructively regulate their emotions. As we look into all these benefits, it is clear to me that children need art. 

Regardless of art’s importance in education, there has been a decline in access to art education throughout the United States. According to a report written by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, “While 88% of Americans agree that arts education is an essential component of a well-rounded education, a range of indicators document a persistent decline in access, particularly for families that cannot finance it on their own. At the same time, the number of college graduates earning degrees in arts education fell sharply over the past decade.” We should do whatever is in our power to support art education in our schools and stop this decline in access that impacts so many families.

What is the Difference Between Project and Process Art

The National Association for the Education of Young Children has a pretty good description of product and process art (see the picture above). However, I do not entirely agree with how they present this information. Based on the information above, they believe that children always experience frustration when participating in the creation of project art and that the whole class always has to do the project at the same time, which hasn’t been true in my experience as an educator. As long as an educator presents the project in a healthy way, all art, whether product or process art, can be a positive experience for children.

I would define Project Art as a craft with a clear goal in mind and typically has steps and instructions that children can follow to create their version of a creation. For example, the photo above shows a project I did with my students while teaching two-year-old children. I provided the supplies they needed to make their very own sharks. I showed my process in completing my shark and let the children decide how they wanted to put the pieces together for their creations. I did not force them to copy my work exactly. As you can see from the picture above, every child’s art is so different and unique, and I did it with about four or five children at a time. This method is always how I suggest doing projects with children: instruct them but do not micromanage them. I loved watching the children make their art their own, and their pride in their creations was evident in their faces. 

Amanda Mager explained process art in this way, “process art, which is not about our expectations, but rather about the process the child has gone through to create a masterpiece (and it truly is a masterpiece) that is meaningful to him.” Process art is when you provide materials (paint, markers, scissors, paper, and glue) and allow them to experiment freely with the materials. Children decide which materials are used, what they create, and how they create their art. Process art doesn’t have a clear outcome or goal as to what is created. In my experience as an educator, it is best that children almost always have access to this type of art. We would put out materials and allow the children to create freely. It is less structured and can often get messier than project art activities. However, mess doesn’t necessarily make any art bad; it can be an opportunity for children to learn to clean up after themselves. 

Benefits of Process Art

Just because process art doesn’t have a clear creative outcome doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a clear academic outcome. Amanda Mager explains that process art “helps work on fine motor skills, can introduce children to materials, and promotes creativity, self-expression, initiative, and a sense of accomplishment and competence.” Allowing children to explore art materials freely helps build their understanding of how materials work and the limitations of each material. Process art will also enable children to practice cleaning and organization as they put the materials away and wipe up messy surfaces. Mager continues to share, “But sometimes we, as early educators, do not value this activity as much as crafts because we don’t see the importance in it, it doesn’t give us anything to send home, or we don’t know how to talk to parents about it to discuss its value.” Mager’s words resonate with me; I remember preparing student portfolios the first time I had parent-teacher conferences as a preschool teacher, and as I was making decisions on what to include, I had plenty of lovely process art from each student to choose from. I neglected to talk about it because I genuinely didn’t know how to discuss it with the parents of the kiddos I taught. One suggestion, though it does take a little more thought and preparation, is to write notes on the child’s process to create the art, how the art strengthened their fine motor skills, and what the child said about their art.

Benefits to Project Art

Project art has the negative opinion of many early childhood professionals. I’ve heard it frequently criticized while working as a preschool teacher, and even as I researched this post, I found many articles discouraging the use of project art in early childhood. It was much harder to find articles supporting what I believe to be true: as long as it is done correctly, project art has a place in education. One supporter of project art, Amanda Mager, stated that it ” allows children to work on fine motor skills, introduce them to materials, and teach children to follow directions.” I agree with this statement. Project art can teach children so much about following directions. It also gives children a deeper knowledge of how certain materials are used and inspires them to use those same materials to build their creations. Another benefit of this type of art is its potential to teach children new vocabulary. As an educator explains how to complete the project, children can learn words such as cut, glue, dip, paint, stamp, etc. Mager continued to state “There is a place for both crafts and art in a preschool classroom, but we think it is crucial that as educators, we are intentionally choosing when to do crafts and when to do art. Both have their benefits.” The crafts she refers to are project art, which has a precise creation in mind. Her words resonate with me; it is up to educators to determine when each type of art is appropriate for the classroom. 

Guidelines to Using Project Art in the Classroom

We need to remember the quote above as we do anything with our kids. We do not want art, a form of self-expression, to damage their confidence. We want to empower children to rely on themselves and trust their abilities. As a kindergartener, I remember doing a coloring page with sheep on it, and I decided to color it purple. My teacher scolded me for coloring the sheep as I did, saying, “Sheep are not purple, Hayley.” As a child, this affected my confidence and desire to attend school. What educators say to children matters. Mager wrote, ” As educators, it is better for the child’s product not to meet our expectations than for the child to develop a negative mindset around learning.” Therefore, we need to follow certain guidelines to keep product-oriented artwork positive for children.

Conclusion

In this post, we learned about the difference between process and project art, their benefits, and how to do project art effectively. We also reviewed the importance of art in the preschool classroom. 

What are your opinions of project and process art? What experiences, positive and negative, do you have with doing art with the children in your lives? How do you plan to implement this in your classroom or at home? Put your thoughts in the comments below!

Citations and Related Reading

Monet Paintings: 5 Characteristics of Monet’s Work – 2024 – MasterClass

Why Is Art Important for Preschool? 7 Benefits to Know | Rasmussen University

The Case for Arts Education | American Academy of Arts and Sciences (amacad.org)

How Process-Focused Art Experiences Support Preschoolers | NAEYC

The Value of Art and Craft in Preschool Education: A Comprehensive Guide — Kids by the Sea