Homeschool Reviews: Elementary Art with ARTistic Pursuits Inc.


Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up. -Pablo Picasso
As a child I lost my love of art early on. My focus in school was on figuring out exactly what the teacher wanted and producing it without fail (can we say Enneagram One, anyone?).  A subject like art where there are no right answers and where the process matters more than the product made me anxious and frustrated. Not surprisingly, I've struggled to introduce art to my kids, ages 7 and 5.

Enter ARTistic Pursuits, Inc., the art program that has relieved all my fears about teaching art and inspired countless hours of creative bliss. Artistic Pursuits has an 8 volume elementary art series, K-3rd Grade Level, Volumes 1-8. We started with the first book, Art for Children: Building a Visual Vocabulary, K-3 Vol. 1. This program has been exactly what we needed.



Volume One includes 7 video lessons on the accompanying DVD and Blu-Ray discs as well as 12 lessons from the full-color hardcover course book. The video lessons provide art instruction that even the most inexperienced artist can grasp. We learned how to use a paint brush properly, how to clean your workspace, how to mix colors and textures to enhance our artwork and so much more.

The written lessons provide project ideas as well as study of famous artworks. We got to see the techniques we were practicing in our own projects put to use in the masterpieces of Cezanne, Van Gogh and the like. I love how this curriculum combines art instruction, project inspiration, and art appreciation all in one place. It's everything I could ever want in one straightforward volume.

Once you've completed Volume 1, you can progress chronologically through art history with Volumes 2 - 8 or you can select the time period that correlates best with your study in history, literature or geography. There are volumes covered Ancient times, the Middles Ages, the Italian Renaissance, the art of Northern Europe, the Impressionists, the Modern Age, and American art. I am definitely looking forward to exploring some of these other volumes once we finish with the first book.

The list of supplies needed was blessedly short. Most of them were things we already had around the house like pencils, glue sticks, thick paper, scissors, construction paper, and an eraser.

Many of the lessons taught in Volume One used watercolor crayons (the one supply we didn't have on hand). I was previously unfamiliar with watercolor crayons, but my kids loved working with this medium. Through the instructional videos we learned to sketch a design lightly in pencil, add color with the watercolor crayons, mixing colors and textures to produce the desired effect, and then brushing the picture with water to bring the image to life. Watching their pictures transformed before their eyes was magical for my children.



After several weeks using this program I could not be more satisfied. My kids are excited to do the lessons and proudly display their finished work. I've heard them gushing, "We love art!" and I'm so glad that their first exposure to the subject has been a positive one. There is little to no prep-time required from me as an instructor. The lessons provide just enough instruction to help us feel confident with the materials, but the projects aren't so rigid as to stifle creativity. And at the end of the day we can all spend time creating art together. I'm rediscovering the joy of creativity right alongside my children.

I hope this review was helpful to you and your family. If you'd like to see how other homeschool families experienced this product, please visit the Homeschool Review Crew or click the image below.



Comments

  1. This looks amazing! My son likes art, but I have never really gotten us a curriculum to use. This looks like something that I can work with!

    Thanks for linking up @LiveLifeWell!

    Blessings,

    Amy

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