There are a lot of things that I am capable of – even good at – teaching my kids. I own a craft business that keeps me very busy so you would think art would be one of those things. However, it is not. I have no clue how to actually teach my children to art. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. seemed like it was worth a shot.
Designed as a homeschool program that will teach art instruction, art history and art technique in a way your children will love. With multiple different age programs, we explored the K-3rd Grade Level, Volumes 1-8. We chose to work on Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4. It was really hard to decide which volume to start with but my kids have been really into watercolor painting lately so I thought it was a great chance to give them some real art instruction – especially on the techniques in using watercolor paints.
What you receive with each program is a hardcover book and a DVD. You can purchase the art materials with the program or you probably already have some of the things you need around home or go with my trusty friend Amazon. Each lesson includes either a short video introducing a new technique showing how to use it to do the project for that day or a short history lesson that you read to your children before completing the project.
Once using the program, there were a few things that I noticed. First, each lesson is pretty short, depending on how long your child works on each project. I have three kids using this – 8, 6 and a 4-year-old. We would get all of our materials out on the table and I would sit down with them to read the days lesson or turn on the video for the day. The video has a lot of great tips for using that art medium. The video goes through it, then after completing the project on the video, it also reviews the instructions and tips before you begin the project.
The second thing I noticed is that not only does the book talk about an artist, it also shows a finished project with a few questions to get your children thinking about and noticing specific things about the artist’s painting or technique.
Third, because of the questions it asks, your child will add more detail to their painting. I love the random things that it encourages them to add to their painting.
My favorite thing about it though is that encourages your children to explore the world around them. You aren’t instructed to draw the same thing the artist did, the book encourages your children to go outside, find a spot to sit and examine what you see. Then, bring that into your artwork.
Each lesson is laid out to be very easy to follow. The outlined box tells you what materials you need for that lesson. Then you read the passage about the artist, the questions, then directions for completing that day’s lesson.
Once the paints come out – my kids are sold on it. My oldest will work very diligently to get hers just the way she wants it, using the techniques and tips she has learned in previous lessons and the video. My boys will work on many different pieces of art.
Our family has really enjoyed the flexibility in choosing what exactly they are painting that day. While the book encourages you to choose a setting or an object, it doesn’t specify what exactly that object has to be so each child will create a different work of art. The kids enjoy it so much – I don’t tell them when it’s art day – they tell me and I’ll call that a win every time.
Find out what some fellow bloggers think about the different levels of ARTistic Pursuits Inc. that they have reviewed by clicking the link below.
