The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment has created a series of guidelines for teachers of art teaching students with disabilities. The guidelines emphasise promoting class discussion, clear instructions, involving students in the demonstrations, experiential learning opportunities and “The teacher should create a warm classroom environment that fosters respect for other students and that encourages the student to take risks with his/her artwork.”

The Intersection of Arts Education and Special Education by he John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, ©2012 includes advice from several education academics. Suggestions include methods of fostering classroom collaboration, presenting big ideas and themes through artworks and art therapy sessions. The main outcome for these steps is to “extend attention span and social skills development.” (Dorff, 2012).

This is a blog that has multiple articles and classroom ideas for art activities and ways to engage all students. Danelle promotes clear, sequential tasks and demonstrations by the teacher of what is expected.

 Making Art Accessible for Students with Physical, Visual, and Speech Disabilities Through Assistive Technology

Coleman, et al describe the value of art making and creativity as an invaluable tool for different forms of communication and allowing critical thinking and “aesthetic awareness”. The strategies provided encourage art experimentation and material manipulation in the art classroom.

“The Dax Education Program provides a dynamic environment to explore art, mental illness, creativity as well as emotional wellbeing.  It provides students, educators and the broader community with a valuable and memorable educational experience that engages them in the fascinating complexity of mental health.” This gallery holds exhibitions that often have themes that revolve around mental health in the arts and focusses on the diversity of creativity and abilities of creative practitioners. This would be a fantastic excursion to take students to as an engaging experience because “some students with multiple life stressors become progressively restless and discouraged.” (Carpenter et al, 2014)