What is Art Therapy?
In recent years, there’s been a growing interest in mindfulness, emotional regulation, and mental well-being—not only in personal life but also in education. Schools are increasingly recognizing the importance of supporting the emotional lives of students, not just their academic progress. Alongside this shift, art therapy has gained attention as a tool that connects creative expression with emotional health.
While its clinical applications are wide-ranging, art therapy also offers insights and methods that can be adapted for classroom settings. As someone interested in emotional intelligence and its development through art, I see strong potential in the ways art therapy can help students build self-awareness, manage stress, and better understand their emotions.
This post explores what art therapy is, how it works, and how its core principles can inform mindful and emotionally supportive practices in schools. Whether you’re an educator, parent, or simply curious, this is a starting point for understanding the role of art in mental and emotional well-being.
If you’re looking for practical ways to bring these ideas into your classroom, I’ve put together a list of simple, low-prep art therapy–inspired activities that support emotional regulation, focus, and reflection.
You can find them here: 12 Easy Art Therapy Ideas for the Classroom. Each activity is designed to be accessible, flexible, and grounded in process rather than outcome.
Read also:
What is Art Therapy and How Does It Work?
Art therapy is a form of psychotherapy that uses art-making to support mental, emotional, and sometimes physical well-being. It is facilitated by licensed art therapists—professionals trained in both psychological theory and visual arts—who guide individuals through creative processes to help them express and explore emotions, memories, and experiences that might be difficult to communicate verbally.
According to the American Art Therapy Association (AATA), art therapy “integrates psychotherapeutic techniques with the creative process to improve mental health and well-being.” It is used in a wide range of clinical settings, including hospitals, mental health centers, schools, and rehabilitation facilities. The focus is not on producing “good” or technically skilled artwork, but on the process of creating and the meaning it carries for the individual.
The act of drawing, painting, sculpting, or assembling can bring forward emotions and patterns that are otherwise hard to access. Art therapy can support students dealing with trauma, anxiety, behavioral difficulties, or developmental challenges, offering a nonverbal way to explore and regulate complex feelings in a structured, safe space. Research has shown that art therapy may help reduce stress, improve emotional resilience, and increase self-awareness and self-esteem.
That said, art therapy is a regulated field, and the term shouldn’t be used casually. It requires formal credentials and clinical training, and its practice is protected by ethical standards that non-therapists should not attempt to replicate.
Still, I believe—and many educators and school counselors would agree—that we can borrow elements of this practice in a careful, intentional way. If we set aside the expectation of diagnosis or treatment, we can draw inspiration from some of the core principles of art therapy: creating without judgment, making space for emotion, and supporting expression through visual means.
In the classroom, this can mean offering students the chance to draw how they feel, build visual metaphors for emotional states, or simply work with tactile materials as a way to reset. These practices don’t replace therapy. But they can support emotional literacy, self-regulation, and quiet reflection—skills that lie at the heart of emotional intelligence and that benefit all students, not just those in distress.
And while I’m not a therapist, I am deeply invested in the connection between art and emotional growth. This post and others on this blog explore how creative practices can be used responsibly and meaningfully in everyday learning environments, grounded in the belief that small, well-considered activities can make a real difference.
Want to raise kids who are kind, thoughtful, and emotionally aware?
This free printable guide helps you build an age-by-age bookshelf that supports emotional intelligence from toddlerhood to the teenage years.
A personal note worth adding?
My approach to art therapy didn’t come through psychology, but through art itself. I was trained in Asia, and much of my academic work has been shaped by the philosophies and practices of Chan (Zen) Buddhism. In this context, art is often ephemeral, process-based, and closely tied to mindfulness. Works like water-and-ink calligraphy or floating ink paintings aren’t meant to last. Their value lies in the act of making, in presence and impermanence, not in permanence or display.
This perspective naturally aligned with process-based art education, where exploration and experimentation are more important than the final product. It made it easier to see how art-making can support self-awareness and reflection, without requiring technical skill or formal evaluation.
If you’re interested in these adjacent ideas, I also recommend looking into Bruno Munari’s work on play, design, and the role of open-ended creation in learning. His approach, like that of many non-Western traditions, sees creativity as a natural extension of thought and emotion—not something separate from everyday life.
Read also:
The Mental Health Benefits of Art Therapy for Students
Art therapy can support students’ mental health in several important ways, and while it’s not a replacement for professional mental health care, it draws on methods that are increasingly recognized for their value in educational settings.
Promotes Social Connection and Self‑Esteem
Group art activities can help students feel more connected to their peers. Creating something alongside others naturally builds a sense of shared purpose and often improves how students relate to one another. It also creates space for students to express themselves in ways that don’t rely on verbal communication, which can be especially useful for those who struggle socially. When students are encouraged to share their work—or simply have it acknowledged—it often leads to a boost in confidence and a sense of belonging.
Reduces Stress and Anxiety
There is evidence that even short periods of art-making can lower stress levels by reducing cortisol in the body. While not every student will respond in the same way, having the chance to focus on a quiet, repetitive task like drawing, painting, or collage can help create a sense of calm. These kinds of activities are also accessible (they don’t require special skills or preparation) and that alone can make them feel more approachable for students who might be overwhelmed by other parts of the school day.
Enhances Emotional Regulation
One of the clearest benefits of art-making is the chance it offers to externalize emotions. For students dealing with anxiety, frustration, or big emotional shifts, having a physical outlet, something they can shape, color, tear, smooth, or rearrange, can support better regulation over time. These activities don’t rely on language, which makes them especially helpful for students who find it difficult to explain how they feel.
When practiced regularly, they can become part of a broader strategy for managing emotional states more effectively.
Builds Self-Awareness and Resilience
Through creative expression, students often become more aware of their own emotional patterns, interests, and responses. This kind of insight, even if it comes in small steps, supports emotional literacy and self-reflection. It also builds resilience. Art allows students to work through difficult material indirectly and gives them a structure for doing so at their own pace.
Facilitating Art Therapy–Inspired Activities
- Create a Safe, Contained Environment: A supportive space matters: research shows that students are more likely to engage meaningfully in creative activities when the environment is structured, calm, and free from judgment. Even simple adjustments (like offering clear boundaries, consistent expectations, and privacy when needed) can make a difference in how students approach these moments.
- Keep It Brief and Consistent: Short, regular creative sessions tend to be more effective than occasional, longer ones. They’re easier to build into a school schedule and help students develop a steady habit of checking in with themselves. Whether it’s five minutes after recess or a short activity to start the day, consistency encourages trust and routine.
- Use Prompts That Emphasize the Process: Instead of asking students to create something specific, offer open-ended invitations like “draw how your day feels,” “make lines with different pressures,” or “use color to show your mood.” These prompts keep the focus on the act of making, not on the final result. This reduces anxiety around performance and opens the door to honest expression.
- Allow Space for Hesitation: Not every student will jump in right away, especially if they’ve had negative experiences with art. Rather than pushing, offer quiet encouragement and let them observe or explore materials at their own pace. Many will engage once the pressure is removed.
- Provide a Range of Materials: Having a variety of tools like markers, colored pencils, soft pastels, collage scraps or textured paper, allows students to choose what feels right for them. Choice supports autonomy and makes it more likely they’ll find a medium that helps them connect to what they’re feeling.
- Support Without Interpretation: It’s important not to read into what students create. Instead, offer neutral feedback or simple observations: “You spent a lot of time on this area,” or “Looks like you chose bold colors today.” The goal is to make students feel seen without attaching meaning they didn’t express.
- Make It Part of the Routine: These activities work best when they’re not treated as one-offs. You can weave them into existing structures, such as calm-down corners, transition times, early-finish choices, or weekly journaling blocks. When students know they have access to this kind of space regularly, it becomes a tool they can use to regulate and reflect on their own terms.
If you’re looking for practical ways to introduce these practices, you can explore this related post: 12 Easy Art Therapy Ideas for the Classroom. It includes accessible, low-prep activities designed to support emotional awareness and creative self-regulation without requiring any therapeutic training.
Are You Enjoying this kind of content?
Sign up to receive thoughtful articles, teaching tools, and creative prompts straight to your inbox.
Save for Later:
Additional Resources
Art Therapy and Mental Health by TED-Ed
Books:
The Art Therapy Sourcebook by Cathy Malchiodi
Art Therapy Techniques and Applications by Susan Buchalter
Websites:
American Art Therapy Association
Verywell Mind on Art Therapy
Papers:
Kaimal, G., Ray, K., & Muniz, J. (2016). Reduction of Cortisol Levels and Participants’ Responses Following Art Making. Journal of the American Art Therapy Association.
