Thinking routines, such as seeing, thinking and questioning, are adaptable for use with visual arts. In this process, teachers ask students to look at a piece of artwork, such as a painting or statute and describe it. Students then answer such questions as, what does it make you think about? How can you explain it? What questions do you have? Through this process students make observations and draw conclusions.
Teachers can apply reasoning routines to visual arts. Teachers can use illustrations as a pathway to learning, to help students see connections between concepts and topics, and further as a way for students to express their understanding and point of view. By first discussing as a group concepts and topics inherent in an illustration, students create their own illustrations to express their unique perception of the same ideas.
Goals for using visual arts in critical thinking development include developing an improved ability to focus, conceptualize, categorize and associate; developing a foundation for learning more about visual arts; associating similar thinking in other academics, sports and daily life.
By being personally engaged in the learning process, students are less likely to be distracted and disruptive. By following the steps in these processes, students realize more than one way exists to answer all thought-provoking questions, and they develop skills to use their mind proficiently. Art subjects are attractive to students and provide a low-risk, high-feedback means of of nurturing their natural curiosity into deeper-level critical thinking.