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There are many ways that you and your kids can add art study into your homeschool – even if you don’t love art or feel artsy! You don’t have to do craft projects to study art with your kids. We almost never do craft projects in our house, unless they come in a kit (like a monthly kit that comes in the mail) or are initiated by my kids. We do handicrafts, that have purpose and teach a skill, but not crafty crafts.
For our family, my purpose in doing art study with my kids are:
- to expose them to different types of art
- to learn about significant artists
- to try different art methods and materials
- to give them different ways to express creativity
- to learn that we are all creative in our own ways
Art study doesn’t have to be something you get a specific curriculum for or that you do everyday. Not all kids will be super interested in it, and that’s okay! You could do art study as part of your Morning Time or just during a free afternoon.
Here are some of our favorite ways to incorporate art study into our homeschool, and some resources that we have used to help you do it.
Copy a Famous Art Piece
Study/observe a famous piece of art and have your kids copy it as best they can.
A Year in Art: a painting a day
The Arts – a visual encyclopedia
13 Paintings Children Should Know
Create Your Own Version
Don’t just copy the piece of art, but use it to inspire your own version without trying to do a straight copy. Try using different mediums, different colors, etc. to have your kids create their own version of a famous work of art How would Van Gogh’s Starry Night look if you did it with chalk pastels? How would it look if it was Sunny Day instead of Starry Night? Encourage your kids to think outside the box!
The Usborne Art Treasury – pictures, paintings, and projects
Study an Artist’s Life and Works
Do a study of an artist’s life and their works of art. Grab books from the library about a specific artist. Find books or prints of their artwork. Simply Charlotte Mason has great studies on artists, if you want something that’s already put together.
There are SO many books you can find, these are just some of the ones that we own and have used:
The Usborne Book of Famous Artists (this book is out of print and kind of expensive, unless you can find it used) or Famous Artists Flashcards
The Genius of Leonardo
Portrait of an Artist – this is a series with several artists
Linnea in Monet’s Garden
100 Pablo Picassos
Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists – this is a whole series of books (they also have a series on musicians!)
13 Artists Children Should Know
Copy the Method/Style
Be inspired by impressionism or pointillism or mosaics or weaving. Have your kids make their own art using that method or style.
Anholt’s Artists Activity Book – Anholt
Study a Period or Movement of Art
I think it’s fun to study a period of art, to see that there have been movements of art through time where artists create in similar styles. Study what happened during that time that inspired that art!
A Year in Impressionism – Prestel
The Story of Paintings – a history of art for children
Art That Changed the World: Transformative Art Movements and the Paintings That Inspired Them
Art in History
There are SO many works of art that reflect historical events or significant times in history. Art is a fantastic way for kids to study history. I highly recommend using art as part of your history lessons, even if all you do is put out an art print or open a book to a painting that is related to what you’re studying.
The Renaissance for Kids through the Lives of its Artists, Tyrants, Scientists, and Saints
Learn a Specific Technique
Spend some time learning specific art techniques. These could go along with paintings or artists you study, or they could just be stand alone lessons. You don’t need to know how to do these on your own, though. Use books or YouTube videos to guide you. You can find tons of free art lessons online!
Painting and Drawing in Waldorf Schools
13 Art Techniques Children Should Know
Timeless Techniques for Better Oil Paintings
Oil Painting with a Basic Palette
The Laws Guide to Nature Drawing and Journaling
How to Draw almost every animal
Usborne Art Ideas – drawing faces
Ed Emberley’s drawing books
Practice with a New Medium
It’s easy to stick with things you are comfortable with… most homeschoolers will buy a set of watercolors and a nature journal and call it good. But don’t be afraid to stretch out into new mediums!
- chalk pastels
- charcoal
- oil paints
- acrylic paints
- clay
- watercolor
- colored pencils
- fabric
The Encyclopedia of Watercolor Techniques
The Encyclopedia of Coloured Pencil Techniques
A Year in Art – The Activity Book
Handicrafts
Like I said before, we don’t do a lot of crafts around here, but we do a lot of handicrafts! I want my kids to learn useful, traditional skills… and these are definitely an art form! A few handicraft ideas:
- sewing
- quilting
- embroidery
- wood carving
- woodworking
- wood burning
- weaving
- knitting
- crochet
- macrame
- leather work
I have a list of handicraft supplies in my Amazon storefront.
Here are some posts you might like:
Visit an Art Museum
Visit an art museum to see some of the art in person! Even if you don’t have a large art museum near you, you can often find smaller art museums. Fiber art museums show different mediums like quilting and weaving, Civil War museums might have art from the time period, etc.
More Resources:
A Child’s Introduction to Art: the world’s greatest paintings and sculptures
The Usborne Complete Book of Art ideas
Simply Charlotte Mason Picture Studies
Supplies:
You don’t need to buy super expensive art supplies, especially if you and your kids are just experimenting. If your kids start to get more serious about art, or they want to do more than just mess around, I do recommend upgrading beyond dollar store materials. We get a lot of inexpensive art supplies, but my kiddo who loves art has higher quality art materials. I also have paints that are nicer than cheap crayola paints, because they will just paint better! I have some art materials linked in my Amazon storefront, but here are ideas:
- chalk pastels
- watercolors
- watercolor paper
- sketch books
- acrylic paints
- oil paints
- canvases
- charcoal pencils
- modeling clay
There are SO many ways that your family can incorporate art study into your homeschool! What’s your favorite way?