I believe that art is necessary to our creativity. It helps our imaginations to grow...and through art we can create things that we can only imagine. Art is a way to encourage self-expression and help children express feelings and emotions. Personally, I love to look at art but I've never been very good at drawing, painting, molding, or sculpting and I was very insecure with the idea of trying to teach my child something so "free" as art. Thanks to the
TOS Crew and
Artistic Pursuits we are well on the way to incorporating a study of Art in our homeschool and it has been easy and fun!
Artistic Pursuits uses "a variety of fun art lessons that teach both the expressive and technical
aspects of art while allowing children to make choices about what and
how they will draw, paint, and sculpt." Using a variety of tools, mediums, techniques and multiple book levels, Artistic Pursuits teaches children everything from learning art through history to drawing & color theory. A picture-study is provided as examples with thought-provoking questions to help the learner try to understand the emotion and message the artist intended as well as critically examine the art style the artist was using. What is really wonderful is, Artistic Purusits teaches children how to create original works of art...not just copy a pattern or sample.
We were excited to try out the very first level of
Artistic Pursuits, K-3 Book 1, An Introduction to The Visual Arts. It retails for $42.95. The K-3 Books include 32 lessons complete with sample projects. This would be a whole year of art study using 1 lesson per week. (Upper level Books are 64 lessons). There
is a Materials Page in the front of the book which is helpful and very comprehensive. An
Art Supply Pack and other items
can be bought through Artistic Pursuits or through a wholesaler, although I picked up most of what I needed at Hobby Lobby.
The K-3 Book 1 discusses "what artists do" and then shares how artists compose, imagine, look, communicate...etc. Each 2-3 page lesson focuses in on one those topics offering the child a full color painting example to study and ponder. Using the sample questions provided, the parent can ask the child questions about the art really encourages them to look INTO the painting...not just at the painting. Then the lesson teaches the child how to get a similar result using a certain art tool...a shading pencil, watercolors and so forth. Kayley really enjoyed learning about art and then having the opportunity to try it out for herself. I love how it encouraged her to create her own "masterpieces." Everything with a magnetic surface in my home now has beautiful art hanging on display and Kayley asks to do more art every day!
What we liked about Artistic Pursuits:
-Simple to use, low prep (as long as you had the necessary materials!)
-Engaging, educational and fun!
-A variety of topics gives a great overview of art! Even I learned a LOT!
What we didn't like about Artistic Pursuits:
-Even buying wholesale/discount art supply stores - the materials you need really adds up and can be a little expensive...
With so many to levels to choose from (K-High School), there will be an Artistic Pursuits book that is perfect for your homeschool! To make a purchase or learn more about each product, click
HERE.
To see what my fellow crewmates thought of Artistic Pursuits, click
HERE.
Disclaimer:
I received Artistic Pursuits
free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
All the opinions
expressed herein are my own.
