Anxiety and Theater Arts in the ECE Curriculum: Acceptance and Action

“As I’ve said many times before, arts education is not a luxury, it’s a necessity. It’s really the air many of these kids breathe. It’s how we get kids up and going to school in the morning. It’s how we get them to take ownership of their future. And, most importantly, it’s how we get (them) to go to college” Michelle Obama, speaking at 2015 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards ceremony

I have a passion and calling for both early childhood education and the arts. I believe that participation in theater arts is not only an outlet for young children to build self -confidence, embody a character, and enhance their social emotional skills, it also helps children cope with anxiety and trauma. In Michelle Obama’s quote, she says “It’s how we get kids up and going to school in the morning.” We all need motivation and inner drive. A young child with anxiety sometimes needs an impetus to quell fear just to physically get out of bed in the morning and go to school.

As a community theater actor and director, I’ve had many conversations older teens and adults (many of whom experienced anxiety) who said what got them to class in middle and high school was knowing they were involved in a play or musical. These discussions made me think that if children are introduced to theater arts as a part of the early childhood curriculum, could it help alleviate some symptoms of anxiety while enhancing social and emotional resilience? This is an area of research that I plan to explore as I pursue my doctoral studies.

Positive mental health in early childhood is important to a child’s well-being and is a precursor to resiliency in adulthood. One aspect that affects mental health in early childhood is anxiety and it is more prevalent than we realize. Untreated, there are effects not only on mental health, but cognitive learning as well. Anxiety is not a visible disorder. Since everyone has the ability to be anxious depending on the circumstances, anxiety is also a term many believe is overused in the diagnosis of children, as if it not a viable disorder. In schools, especially in individual classrooms, the understanding of and desire to help a child with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and/or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (GAD/OCD) depends on the teacher and their professional as well as personal experience. The willingness of parents and teachers to take anxiety seriously, learn the root causes, and also be willing to adapt possible bias is crucial in helping children succeed.

Anxiety experienced in early childhood can lead to school absences, and impact the development of critical social emotional skills. (Greco & Morris 2001). School absence interrupts not only academics, but relationships with peers, and possible disconnect with teachers who may not understand or appreciate the nuances of anxiety disorders. Research involving young children with anxiety had “4 times increased odds of missing more school whereas positive emotional and behavioral health was protective against missing school.” (Vish & Stolfi, 2020, p.687). Given that anxiety disrupts the welfare of children in a crucial time of cognitive, emotional, and physical development, the classroom teacher plays a crucial role in partnering with the family to help the child successfully navigate the school day and lessons. Several studies have demonstrated that poor mental health is associated with reduced school attendance, with anxiety described in the literature as a particular risk factor (Egger et al., 2003; Elliott & Place, 2009; Kearney, 2008b).

An intentional theater arts curriculum introduced in public early childhood classrooms (beginning in Grade 1) could improve school attendance for children with anxiety, enhance social emotional coping skills, and increase self-confidence in students. Instruction could also reduce general performance anxiety for typically developing students, not just those with a diagnosed disorder. This proposed change has two immediate challenges: obtaining buy-in from classroom teachers that anxiety is a valid disorder that needs accommodations and attention to 504 parameters, and leverage after initial buy-in that theater arts introduced into the early childhood curriculum would benefit children with anxiety and their peers, with increased attendance and possibly enhanced self-regulation in the classroom. Although helpful, teachers do not need to have a foundation in theater arts, just receptiveness to the concept as a valid strategy in learning related to social emotional well-being, open to professional development, and the inclination and disposition to be genuine in its implementation.

Exposing young children to theater arts has many benefits. Observing children during play in classroom learning centers highlights their imagination through conversation with peers, dressing up in dramatic play, as well as their engagement through books and music and movement activities. Children naturally take on roles of people in their own lives during play. “The open-ended nature of process drama may alleviate anxiety about making mistakes, and thus encourage children to cross the threshold from nonverbal activity to verbalization.” (Brown, 2017, p.167). The study by Brown, V. argues that young children from preschool – second grade (age 8) are at an ideal developmental time in their young lives and schooling to receive process drama training because they will learn how to develop skills such as conflict resolution, as well as exploring themes. This is important because it supports the teaching of drama to young children as an integrated tool, not just as a casual activity. Drama, theater, and story-acting allows children to create fictional spaces where they can roleplay and practice communication, social, and emotion regulation skills (Nicolopoulou et al., 2009).

Empowering teachers to have the courage to implement a theater arts curriculum as a strategy to reduce school absences and promote positive mental health in young children is compelling, especially if outcomes are reached. Patient, positive, and collaborative leadership is needed to enact change. Walt Disney said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.” What are your thoughts? Do you think including theater arts as a regular part of the early childhood curriculum has merit, especially related to anxiety and social emotional health?

References

Brown, V. (2017). Drama as a valuable learning medium in early childhood. Arts Education Policy Review, 118(3), 164–171.

Egger, H. L., Costello, J. E., & Angold, A. (2003). School refusal and psychiatric disorders: A community study. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 42, 797–807.

Elliott, J. G., & Place, M. (2009). Practitioner review: School refusal: Developments in conceptualisation and treatment since 2000. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 4, 4– 15. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12848.

Greco, Laurie A, and Tracy L Morris. “Treating Childhood Shyness and Related Behavior: Empirically Evaluated Approaches to Promote Positive Social Interactions.” Clinical child and family psychology review 4.4 (2001): 299–318. Web.

Kearney, C. A., & Silverman, W. K. (1995). Family environment of youngsters with school refusal behavior: A synopsis with implications for assessment and treatment. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 23, 59–72

*Nicolopoulou, A., Barbosa de Sa, A., Ilgaz, H., & Brockmeyer, C. (2009). Using the transformative power of play to educate hearts and minds: From Vygotsky to Vivian Paley and beyond. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 17, 42-58. DOI: 10.1080/10749030903312512

Vish, N. L. & Stolfi, A. (2020). Relationship of children’s emotional and behavioral disorders with health care utilization and missed school. Academic Pediatrics, 20(5), 687–695. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2020.02.017