The Hidden Value of Art and Music in School

When schools talk about 'rigour', art and music are usually the first to be quietly trimmed — fewer minutes, fewer teachers, fewer materials. The logic is that they are nice but not essential. The research, the parent reports and the lived experience of children all disagree.

What art and music actually teach

• Patience — finishing a painting or learning a piece takes time, not minutes.
• Fine motor skill — painting, instrument playing, dance steps all build coordination that helps writing.
• Pattern and structure — music is mathematics you hear; art is geometry you see.
• Emotional regulation — making something beautiful is a powerful mood reset for a tired child.
• Cultural rootedness — classical music and traditional art forms connect children to a heritage screens cannot.

What a good arts programme looks like

1. Weekly dedicated time — not 'one period before annual day'.
2. Specialist teachers — visual art, music, dance taught by trained instructors.
3. Both classical and contemporary — Carnatic vocals alongside choir, Bharatanatyam alongside contemporary, classical art forms alongside crafts.
4. Performance opportunities — small, frequent, low-pressure, not just the annual show.
5. Portfolio building — children should leave each year with a folder of their best work.

What parents can do at home

• Keep paints, crayons, paper and instruments accessible — not locked away.
• Don't grade their art. 'Tell me about this' beats 'good job'.
• Listen to a wider range of music together — Hindustani, Carnatic, Western classical, film, world.
• Visit a museum, a temple, an art exhibition, a live concert each term.

Arts at Yajur

Yajur Public School offers weekly classes in visual art, classical and contemporary music (vocal and instrumental), Bharatanatyam, contemporary dance and drama. Specialist teachers lead each discipline. Children leave each year with a portfolio of work and the option to specialise further from Class 4 onwards.

Carnatic and Hindustani in a Warangal school

Telangana has rich classical music and dance traditions. A good school in Warangal makes them visible — Carnatic vocal, Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, and contemporary forms alongside Western music and dance. Children grow up understanding their own heritage rather than seeing it as a separate activity reserved for grandparents or competitions.

Ask your shortlisted schools how often classical performances happen, whether children meet practising artists, and whether the music room has real instruments — harmoniums, tabla, sitars, violins, keyboards — rather than just a cupboard of recorders. Real instruments signal a real programme.

Art that lasts

Good art teachers introduce techniques systematically — line, shape, perspective, colour theory, texture — rather than rotating through 'craft of the week'. By Class 5 a child should be able to discuss their own work using vocabulary like composition, balance and contrast. This is not pretentious; it is the start of visual literacy that helps in design, communication and life.

How to support an interested child at home

A child who shows real interest in music or art benefits from access at home — a basic instrument, a sketchpad and decent pencils, a quiet corner to work in. The investment is modest. The biggest support is parental interest. Ask about what your child is working on. Hang their drawings on the wall, even the imperfect ones. Listen to them practise without checking your phone.

Avoid pushing performance. The child who plays for the joy of it tends to keep playing. The child pushed onto annual day stages too early often quietly drops the instrument by Class 6.

Cultural events as classroom

Warangal has temple festivals, classical music concerts and dance recitals through the year. Treat them as part of your child's arts education. A child who has heard live Carnatic vocal in a temple courtyard understands the music differently from a child who has only heard it through a speaker.