The arts teach children that in complex forms of problem solving purposes are seldom fixed, but change with circumstance and opportunity. Learning in the arts requires the ability and a willingness to surrender to the unanticipated possibilities of the work as it unfolds.

Learning through and about the arts enriches the experience of studying while at school as well as preparing students for life after school. Arts subjects encourage self-expression and creativity and can build confidence as well as a sense of individual identity.

Art can uplift, provoke, soothe, entertain and educate us and is an important part of our lives. At its most profound level, it takes us from the everyday to a place of introspection and contemplation, to see the bigger picture of the human condition.

One key takeaway is that Tommy compromises by trying art the art teacher's way and also getting to try his own way as an artist. In the book, The Art Lesson, Tommy wants to be an artist when he gets older. He practices his art all of the time and listens to the advice of artists he knows who tell him to never copy.