Crafts and arts have always been strongly connected to the development of both manual and intellectual skills of humans. The Paleolithic Age, often recognised as the beginning of human history, was marked by the first development and use of stone tools. Since then, craft artefacts have been a sign of human progress and evolution, showing higher cognitive abilities within a community.
From ancient Greece’s techne to the Old English cræft, craftsmanship has been linked to both physical skill and mental growth. This connection continues today. Since the 1980s, arts and crafts have also played a significant role in special education, tailored to learners with physical, cognitive, emotional, or developmental differences. Their flexibility allows them to adapt to each individual, fostering a sense of belonging, empowerment, and achievement. They also support behavioural skills (social interaction, self-esteem, relaxation), communication skills (verbal, expressive, receptive), and learning skills (focus, following instructions, fine motor coordination).
Despite the reported benefits of arts in special education, there is no explicit evidence of the role of crafts. Although both terms might encompass similar practices and communication to understand the tasks at hand, the lack of craft, rather than art, activities points to their philosophical distinction and separation. Furthermore, there seems to be a lack in the art-related literature concerning sufficient ways to assess such activities in a special education context.
Case Study: Komotini’s Special Kindergarten Papier Mâché Workshop
At Komotini’s Special Kindergarten, Greece, a papier mâché workshop was conducted to observe the benefits of crafts when applied in special education. Children with different impairments worked with teachers, therapists, and Craeft’s partners to create variations of papier mâché into colourful objects. The process aimed to encourage sensory exploration, peer cooperation, and the gradual building of motor coordination.
Preparing the papier mâché. Photo by: Komotini Special Kindergarten.
Materials and the making process
Materials included recycled paper (old books, mail, catalogues, magazines), a food blender, a basin, a strainer, single-use gloves, and a white book-binding glue. The paper was cut into small pieces, soaked in warm water overnight, and blended into pulp. The pulp was strained to remove water, glue was mixed in for texture, and the final sculpture made by hand could have been coloured before or after drying.
Observations
Communication: Multifold communication seems to have been one of the evident aspects of the workshop through observation and visual analysis. Oral communication occurred between professionals and children, between professionals and organizers, and between organizers and children. Physical communication focused on the relations between school professionals and the children. Visual communication was apparent through the classroom decoration and arrangement. It should be noted the environment is not different from a mainstream kindergarten classroom.
Participation: Those types of communication seem to have fostered the socioemotional development of children and contributed not only to their direct and effective interaction within a group but also led to their participation in a learning activity. Furthermore, based on the evaluation by the school professionals, it can also be suggested that the participation of all children was linked to the creative activity of crafting and exploring new materials.
Socialization: Observation and professionals’ comments indicate that the smooth implementation of the workshop without crises was a good outcome. As they explain, often the children get tired or are irritated by new experiences, and thus they burst into tears or experience yelling crises. For this reason, they saw the workshop as a successful opportunity for the children to meet new people and have new experiences. This was evident through the evaluation survey results showing that half of them agree that the workshop contributed to the children’s socialization.
Hands-On Experiences with Materials: Through the workshop, the children had the opportunity to learn about new materials and, subsequently, develop different sensory experiences. They touched and felt four different textures: the soaked paper pieces, the handmade paper pulp, and industrial and handmade papier mâché. Each child had different reactions, and, for some, the professionals had to be especially vigilant to ensure the materials were not placed in their mouths or ingested.
Professionals and children during the workshop. Photo by: Danae Kaplanidi/PIOP
Gestures: Observations of the children’s hand gestures during sculpting indicated that these predominantly consisted of pressing the material against the table and rolling it in their hands. It should be noted that the observed hand gestures seemed to align rather with the age of the participants than with their abilities. Nevertheless, 67% of the school professionals agreed that even this interaction and making process contributed to the children’s motor skills development.
Workshop Organization: The school professionals found that the workshop was well organized and generally adapted to the children’s needs. One of them highlighted the importance of further adapting the workshop to address the individual needs of each child, considering their specific impairments. Although 67% of them had not participated in a similar workshop in the past, they stated that they would probably take part again in the future.
Craft objects. Photo by: Danae Kaplanidi/PIOP.
Topics for discussion:
- Why do you think crafts have been less emphasized than arts in special education literature? What might this reveal about societal or educational priorities?
- What specific skills (e.g., motor, social, communication) do you think are most effectively developed through craft activities? Why?
- The text mentions that hand gestures during sculpting aligned more with the children’s age than their abilities. What does this suggest about the universality of certain developmental milestones and their relation to craft activities?
- Do you know of any similar examples?
