Art and LD

Most classrooms are set up as auditory processing labs. Most people with Learning Disabilities are not auditory learners. Therefore, to the LD learner, the typical classroom is an oxymoron... it "promotes failure". The arts address intelligences other than auditory processing. The visual world of painting, illustration and drawing is comfortable to many who must scrutinize detail to focus. The kinesthetic world of theater and dance is a haven for the restless. The tactile world of clay, papermaking and sculpture is an oasis for the hands-on learner. The art room can be a place where islands of competence link up to form a pathway to success.

One cautionary note: many individuals with Learning Disabilities may learn best by visual or tactile instruction, but this does NOT mean they are naturally gifted visual artists. I have encountered many individuals who learn best by watching, moving or touching, and who struggle to form lines and shapes into images just as they struggle to form letters and spaces into words and sentences.

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