THE ROLE OF ARTISTIC AND PLASTIC ACTIVITIES IN

STIMULATING CREATIVITY IN PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN

Abstract
Drawing, at any age, remains a special language - a way of describing a story, a
memory or a feeling that can often not be expressed in words. That's why the drawing will help
the child not only develop his artistic side, but also appreciate the art of beauty, express freely
what he thinks, and get acquainted with the world of art and artists of all time.

Key words: artistic and plastic activities, creativity, pre-school children.

Introduction

"Beautiful beautifully educated". (Plato)

Aesthetic education can have a strong influence on moral traits through affective
feelings in front of artistic works, the contemplation of nature's landscapes, the
observation of everything that is right and beautiful in the behavior and activity of
others.

Artistic and plastic activities

Artistic and plastic activity is an ideal setting for developing skills, it is an

activity that produces, likes and helps children to see the beauty.
Children's attention must be focused on values: aspects of nature, traditions,
folklore, art, etc. So they must be taught not to go beyond the values of beauty in the
surrounding life without observing them.
Drawing is one of the closest and most suitable means for aesthetic education,
and aesthetic education is a major part of multilateral education that must be begun from
the earliest age. But as Aristotle said, "the drawing must be studied to develop the sense
of beauty and not become a trade".
The drawing is an environment favorable to the creation possibilities of the
child. The life of pre-school education allows the formation and development of
creativity, and the educator has the task of finding activities characteristic of the
children who represent a form of expression of imagination and creativity. There are,
according to A. L. Taylor, five levels of creativity, of which at preschool age the only
level that can be reached is that of expressive creativity. This type of creativity is
characterized by a free and spontaneous expression of the person without the
preoccupation of the product of his activity to have a certain degree of utility and value.
At pre-school age, creation is of major importance in human becoming, in the formation
and development of the child's personality, even though for humanity the creation of the
child is of no value. To highlight the creative potential of children, the educator should
use the active, associative methods that emphasize the freedom of associations in which
children become participants in finding answers, can have an initiative, ask questions,
and give solutions.
As a form of expression of imagination and thought, artistic and plastic activity
is both a play activity and a form of objectification of the two psychic processes. The
traits of creativity (fluidity, flexibility, originality) can easily be tested through some
design parameters. It is known that a vital component of creativity is the very desire to

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create curiosity, the inward need of affirmation. As an intellectual factor in creativity,
imagination knew at the pre-school age a true "explosion," as it is now at its peak, and
because thinking is at a level of development that has yet to go through other important
stages of development, imagination complements it in a The weakness of thought. Even
though imagination is at the height of its manifestations, yet it is not at the height of its
quality.
Referring to the artistic activity M. Ralea1 considers that the psychology of the
artist is the psychology of certain traits, abilities, attitudes characteristic of all people,
manifested in a higher degree and embracing extreme forms of personality. The
influence of art on the processes of knowledge consists primarily in the development of
sensory-perceptive capacities. The forms of art manifest themselves in the
consciousness of children, especially through the senses. By appealing to the affectivity
of the child, to its emotions towards everything that is beautiful, knowledge through art
becomes more accessible, wider. Visits to various drawing and painting exhibitions, the
viewing of artworks or the presentation of thematic albums help children to observe
aspects of reality that they would not have perceived if they were not offered in artistic
form. The harmonious color of a painting stimulates the child to translate it into his
drawing. The first works of children are mostly combinations of fairy tales, stories of
previously known illustrations. By education, children learn to perceive, observe, and
appreciate beauty in the surrounding world, then in their drawings they will express
their feelings in front of these beauties. Visual perception must be enriched by properly
guided education. Artistic and plastic activities can support children through exercise
exercises to look, see, search for and understand information about the color and shape
of the surrounding objects. There are many possibilities in the kindergarten to prepare
the child to receive and vibrate before the beauty, to create the beauty and to introduce it
into his personal life. The artistic and plastic activities constitute an effective framework
in this respect and a means of stimulating children's creativity. The specific objectives
of the curriculum are to develop capacities, skills, deprivations and skills such as:
- realization of plastic compositions and expressive rendering of an object;
- observing the proportions of an object or between two objects;
- placement of the theme element on the page;
-correct brushing and use of watercolors or other colors of water;
-familization of children with elements of plastic and technical language for their
practical realization.
The didactic strategy is directly responsible for the stimulation of the creative
potential of the pre-school child. In this respect, it aims to stimulate the curiosity and the
need for knowledge in children, to trigger the positive and affective motivation, to
ensure a disinhibition educational environment, to use adequate pedagogical methods,
but also to a flexible didactic behavior.
Plastic activity is also a form of balance between the child's inner world and the
demands of the outside world. Thus, the drawing constitutes a way of preparing the
mental image when its resultant.

Conclusions

1
Psihologie (manual pentru clasa a VI-a de liceu), Craiova, Editura Scrisul Românesc,
1967.

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 To be creative in the general sense means to be able to establish new,
unexpected artistic links between acquainted knowledge or between them and new ones,
to combine with a certain intent, the creative activity always has a clearly defined
purpose. But any creative activity assumes firstly a well-received luggage of
knowledge. That is why the child must be allowed to explore the surrounding world so
that he can use his original ideas. It is the task of the educator to encourage any attempt
by the child, using methods of stimulating creativity, using as many methods as possible
to obtain spontaneous forms. In order to keep children's curiosity and interest, the
material to be worked on should be as diverse as its shape and size, but also its
composition. Also, the use of different work tools (brush, chalk) can widen children's
horizons and give free rein to imagination.
Artistic and plastic activities contribute in particular to educating the taste for
beauty and awaken the interest of the children in compiling their own models, causing
them to express their original ideas and to implement their initiatives.

Bibliography

1. Curriculum-ul educației copiilor în instituțiile preșcolare, (Curriculum of children's

education in pre-school institutions) p.110-115;
2. Garboveanu, Maria: Desenul și culoarea – activitate ludica, în Copilul și jocul,
(Drawing and color - play activity in Child and play) București, 1975 ,E.D.P.;
3. Ilioaia, M.: Metodica predării desenului la clasele I-IV, (Methodology of teaching
drawing in classes I-IV) E.D.P., București, 1981;
4. Calcii, M., Cemortan, S.: Dezvoltarea creativității la preșcolari, (Developing
creativity in preschools) Chișinău Universitas, 2001;
5. Ralea, M.: Psihologie (manual pentru clasa a VI-a de liceu) (Psychology (manual
for the 6th grade of high school)), Craiova, Editura Scrisul Românesc, 1967.

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