How do I Teach Art to my Children when I am not an Artist?

One of the best things about home schooling is the opportunity to build the type of environment you desire for your children and your family. A great way to add a little culture into your home school is by doing a consistent art study with your child. You do not need to be an accomplished artist. Just have a willingness to learn along with your child. It is that energetic and cooperative spirit that will energize your child and inspire them to create something for themselves.

Here are a few ideas to get you and your family started. Purchase an inexpensive artists set. The one we purchases came in a wooden box with a spatula, all the basic acrylic colors, a pallet and several different types of brushes. It makes our children feel like real artists’. We use this set during certain times of the week to delineate it from standard markers and crayons. I purchased a painters pad so that their work can be kept and framed as they produce those first master pieces. Again, there is no need to spend a lot of money. Just having something special to work with really gives your child a since of wonder towards creating art.

Study some of the classics. Each semester we study one famous artist and look at one of their works each week. We talk a bit about what we observe and how it makes us feel. It is a great way to cultivate a taste for art in your children as well as give them a natural eye for color, form, shape, line and texture. The library is a wonderful resource for finding great works of art in book form and of course using the internet is a valuable tool as well. Each week we add another classic master piece to our screen saver so the kids can have it in front of them all week. We also print one on photo paper and hang it in a frame at their level. Think of little steps to immerse them into great works of art. We even print a double set of 8 card sized prints and create a simple matching game for the kids to get their heads around the names of the pieces. This helps them become familiar with the artists work.

Take lots of pictures together. We allow our children to take digital photos of things they find interesting. It is more of a discipline of giving them the eye for something visually pleasing. Many nature shots we put in a flicker account and post them on our nature blog to remember them, where we were, as well as other fun thoughts that the picture reminds us of.

Go to museums and art galleries. Every chance we get, we walk into an art gallery or museum. This gives us a bird’s eye view of what other artists are creating. Most of all, art study is something you will grow to love if you just start to do it. Your children will absorb the love of art and your little acts of sowing art into your family life may produce the next Picasso or Rembrandt.

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Amber Bishop is the co-founder of www.smartmoms-smartbusiness.com and www.smartmoms.freeforums.com ;online resources for work at home moms. She is also the owner of www.homeschool-diva.com She stays home and home schools her three children while building a successful home based business.

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