So I bought "Drawing With Children"...have you actually used it?

[MamaSheep]

I'm wondering about the markers. Markers have never been my favorite medium, especially for filling in fields of color. I do think that her approach to drawing would work well for my ds, who has always been art-phobic (much to the chagrin of his parents, who met at an art college...lol) and I think dd would have fun with it as well. I can see the usefulness of marker for the exercises and contour lines, but I just HATE to use marker to color in things with. They tend to leave streaks and smear each other when you don't want them to, and if you try to blend them they leave color in the tips and you can never get that original clean color again, and I just find them unpleasant to work with. Could someone who has BTDT with this approach comment on this a little? Do I need to use a Sharpie for the outlines and get water-soluble markers for coloring in? Could we use a Sharpie for the line work and then color in with watercolors, crayons, pastels, or other media at least some of the time? How does this whole marker thing play out in real life? Is there a brand I should be looking for?

 

I haven't finished reading through it yet, in case you can't tell.

[Hedgehogs4]

I'm wondering about the markers. Markers have never been my favorite medium, especially for filling in fields of color. I do think that her approach to drawing would work well for my ds, who has always been art-phobic (much to the chagrin of his parents, who met at an art college...lol) and I think dd would have fun with it as well. I can see the usefulness of marker for the exercises and contour lines, but I just HATE to use marker to color in things with. They tend to leave streaks and smear each other when you don't want them to, and if you try to blend them they leave color in the tips and you can never get that original clean color again, and I just find them unpleasant to work with. Could someone who has BTDT with this approach comment on this a little? Do I need to use a Sharpie for the outlines and get water-soluble markers for coloring in? Could we use a Sharpie for the line work and then color in with watercolors, crayons, pastels, or other media at least some of the time? How does this whole marker thing play out in real life? Is there a brand I should be looking for?

 

I haven't finished reading through it yet, in case you can't tell.

 

What you described--sharpies for the outlines and water-soluble for the coloring in is exactly what we did. you can get such variety of point sizes and colors in sharpies these days that there is no limit to their usefulness. we have had good success with just plain ol' markers, and the kids are getting better at keeping the streaking and overlapping marks to a minimum.

[Kareni]

Not addressing your particular question, but here's a thread with great helps from harmonyartmom:

 

Drawing With Children-Lesson Plans and Videos I Created

 

Regards,

Kareni

[ilikemyhomeschool]

great link. Thanks

[MamaSheep]

Thanks, I'll check that out! :)

[Matryoshka]

I never did get around to using the book, but did sign my kids up for Monart classes, where they have all the materials there. I do have to say that the quality markers make a huuuuuge difference. I think they do mention that in the book. They behave completely differently than markers from the kids art supply section. What you want is the Prismacolors - they fill and blend beautifully. You can get them in a dizzying array of colors, and you can get them with two tips on one pen - one side thin for outlining or detail, one side broad for filling. They are, however very expensive, and don't leave the caps off!

 

Even in the Monart classes, though, they used a variety of media, including pastels, charcoal, and paint. Sometimes they'd use markers for the main object of the lesson, then fill the rest of the white space on the page with pastels - that is a nice effect.

[stripe]

I have the book too and am stuck. I don't feel arty enough to lead anyone to artistic greatness. I was somewhat inspired by a recent post to the Childlight Blog about learning to draw.

[Pam Wilhelm]

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/dwclp.htm

 

Take a look at this link.... is this what you are looking for? We started this but never finished....... might be time to go back to it.

[Kidlit]

Thanks for the link and all the replies! I've borrowed this book from our homeschool group library, but I haven't tried to implement it. :hurray:

[MamaSheep]

I never did get around to using the book, but did sign my kids up for Monart classes, where they have all the materials there. I do have to say that the quality markers make a huuuuuge difference. I think they do mention that in the book. They behave completely differently than markers from the kids art supply section. What you want is the Prismacolors - they fill and blend beautifully. You can get them in a dizzying array of colors, and you can get them with two tips on one pen - one side thin for outlining or detail, one side broad for filling. They are, however very expensive, and don't leave the caps off!

 

Even in the Monart classes, though, they used a variety of media, including pastels, charcoal, and paint. Sometimes they'd use markers for the main object of the lesson, then fill the rest of the white space on the page with pastels - that is a nice effect.

 

Thanks. This is just what I needed to hear. Apart from the expense of the markers...lol. They do mention in the book that you should get good markers, but they don't offer a suggestion as to brand (at least not that I've come across yet, as I say I'm still reading). I do remember back in art school having a set of gray scale markers for one class that blended wonderfully, but shortly thereafter it was determined that the solvent they used was a carcinogen and they stopped making them. I suppose if I think about it, it makes sense that someone would have come up with a safer alternative. I guess I'll have to hit the art stores and see what I can find. And threaten my children with hard labor and a dearth of electronic devices if they leave the lids off. Because I think this teaching approach would be great for my kids but I know I'll be frustrated if the markers make me crazy.

[MamaSheep]

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/dwclp.htm

 

Take a look at this link.... is this what you are looking for? We started this but never finished....... might be time to go back to it.

 

Thanks, I've been looking through those too. I haven't decided yet whether to use her lessons or just wing it, but it is definitely nice to know they're there should I need them. :)

[dragons in the flower bed]

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/dwclp.htm

 

Take a look at this link.... is this what you are looking for? We started this but never finished....... might be time to go back to it.

 

We did Drawing With Children several years ago using this set of lesson plans. It worked out okay. What helped me implement it was adopting an attitude of flexibility. If I worried about getting things done correctly or in order, I ended up not doing anything. If I told myself it didn't matter if we had to backpedal, we got a lot more done.

 

I also taught myself to draw using DWC when I was about 16. My grandmother had bought the book. I don't draw well, exactly, but everyone fights to be on my team in Pictionary. I certainly didn't use the book in proper lesson order. I just did what seemed interesting.