ABSTRACT
M. Keinanen, L. Hetland, and E. Winner were able to find four studies assessing the effect of dance instruction on nonverbal, performance IQ scales and on nonverbal paper and pencil spatial reasoning tests. Meta-analysis of these four studies found a significant relationship and concluded that dance does enhance nonverbal skills. This finding, limited in significance because of the small number of studies combined, is one of “near transfer” given that dance is a visual-spatial form of activity. Teachers in visual arts classes present their students with projects that engage them, and they teach their students to persist in their work and stick to a task for a sustained period of time. Perhaps the most obvious habits of mind that students are taught in an art class are about craft. Students are meant to learn about the community of people and institutions that shape the art world—the “field” of art.
