Crafts classes as one of the dimensions of aesthetic education in Polish elementary schools (1918-1939)

Art - including applied arts - played an important role in transmitting national and humanistic values in 1918-1939 Polish universal education, also forming a tool for social change. Aesthetic education was understood very broadly and implemented through direct contact with nature, works of art, and by taking care of the external appearance of students and arranging their immediate surroundings: both at home and in school. Aesthetic education was primarily served by the so-called artistic activities, including drawing, singing and crafts. The article presents the issue of teaching crafts from the perspective of the idea of aesthetic education. The author analyzed curricula and subject literature, conducting a query of selected specialist magazines.