Arts integration in the curriculum is an innovative yet effective educational process by which students learn through the arts. The intention of the program is not necessarily to teach the arts, but to use them as part of regular curricula. Activities use art as a catalyst to make learning meaningful and motivating. Students learn best when they are actively learning. The arts provide opportunities in which students actively participate in learning. Students are more likely to retain knowledge and information when they are involved in the learning process. The use of the arts in the regular curriculum increases knowledge of a general subject area while promoting a better understanding and appreciation of the fine arts. Individuals learn and process information in different ways. We must account for these differences in our teaching styles, so that students have diverse opportunities to learn concepts (McCarthy, 1987). Teaching through the arts is the ideal process for these learning modalities. The four learning styles identified by McCarthy and suggested teaching sequence teach right and left brain processing techniques, ensuring we are teaching the whole brain. We often hear claims that learners are either right or left oriented. Although one side may be dominant, both sides are actually essential to learning. Integrating the arts into the school curriculum offers endless opportunities to engage both sides of the brain. The arts enhance the learning process. The systems they nourish, including sensory, attentional, cognitive, emotional and motor skills, are the driving force behind all other learning. The arts provide learners with opportunities to simultaneously develop and mature in the multiplicity of paper activities and teamwork in our classrooms. These are the qualities necessary to excel and succeed as adults, which should be our ultimate goal as educators. Works Cited Catterall, J. S. (2002). Overview: Arts and transfer of learning. Critical links. Retrieved May 15, 2010 from http://www.aep-arts.org/resources/research.htm 161-172 PDF The overview. Davies, M.A. (2000). Learn... The rhythm continues. Childhood Education, 76 (3) 148 – 153. Jensen E. (2001). Brain-focused arts. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Program Development. McCarthy, B. (1987). The 4-Mat system, teaching learning styles with right/left mode techniques. Barrington, IL: Excel Inc. Norfolk, S., Stenson, J., Williams, D. (2006). The narration class: applications across the program. Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited.