THE WORK OF ART AS A STARTING POINT FOR CREATING STREAM ACTIVITIES IN EARLY PRIMARY EDUCATION

Abstract

STREAM is a modern approach to education that integrates Science (S), Technology (T), Reading and writing (R), Еngineering (Е), Art (A) and Mathematics (M) to provide students with a new learning experience adapted to the 21st century. An integrative approach to teaching creates an environment that is interactive and stimulating for acquiring knowledge. The student is a researcher who often works in a team, directly accesses information and through conversation and critical thinking comes to knowledge that transcends subject divisions. Although included in STEAM and STREAM educational concepts as more advanced variants of the now widespread STEM, Art within these activities often has a marginalized role and is reduced to decoration and illustration. The aim of this paper is to indicate that a work of art can be a starting point for the creation of STREAM educational activities, and that Art can play a much greater role than just improving aesthetics. The paper presents a conceptual project of STREAM activities intended for early primary education, for the creation of which the work of art – medieval calendar illustrations from the "Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry" of the Limbourg Brothers served as a starting point. Through specific teaching themes from the second grade of primary school curriculum, a proposal for the knowledge integration in the Arts (theory of form, interpretation of a work of art, visual art creation), Natural Science (Nature Calendar), Mathematics (forms and practice of calculation through thematically adapted tasks), and Language (description based on observation) is presented. The presented proposal can stimulate ideas among teachers and encourage them to implement STREAM, which will consequently lead to the improvement of the educational process.