Art!

[abba12]

I feel it's important to encourage and facilitate creativity and I want to incorporate art into our homeschool so it is a little more formal and organized/encouraged, especially at this age when they need mummy to set everything up and make it happen. So it's mostly because of my lack of self discipline! But I am really not very good at coming up with things on the fly, I need a plan.

 

Catch is, I am also adverse to spending a lot of money on an art curriculum, especially at these ages when things will be broken, spilt, and the project rarely done the way it's being taught (the height of creativity I suppose!) I see more value in a formal curriculum around 3rd grade upwards, when they're old enough to care for the materials and actually follow the concepts taught.

 

So, do you ladies have any suggestions for art which are low or no cost? We are going to be working on a 6 week unit system, and my thought had been to focus on one medium for each of those units (for example, unit one might be collage, unit two might be watercolours, unit three might be paper mache) and work on a project once a week. I know I can simply google each medium and find a million ideas on pintrest. I guess I am just wondering if there are any pre-written lesson plans along these lines. Note, we are not interested in art history at this point.

 

Thanks for any ideas you can put forward.

[carriede]

I don't know of any 3-4 year old specific art programs.

 

That said, I guess what you would do depends on your goals. If you want your DD to be exposed to and learn different artistic mediums, your method sounds great. :)

 

For me, my art goals aren't as clearly defined. I'd just like DS (and DD) to enjoy the textural differences and improve fine motor skills. So, we'll sometimes do stuff that's inspired by a book we've read or an upcoming holiday. But mostly I just keep basics stocked like crayons, markers, water colors, construction paper, scissors, glue... DS got modeling clay as a birthday gift, so we've used that a couple times too.

 

I'm looking at Artistic Pursuits for when they're older.

 

ETA: We also have tempura (finger) paints.

[rellybob]

Check out Art Lab for Little Kids. The ideas in the book are along those lines, if I'm remembering correctly.

[Jackie]

We always keep the basic art supplies in reach of 3yo DD - paper, markers, colored pencils, a glue stick, scissors, basic collage materials. For inspiration on introducing new ideas, I use the book Preschool Art by MaryAnn Kohl. The book is available for under $20 on Amazon and has ideas organized by month of the year and then by age.

[~Amanda~]

confessions of a homeschooler.

[abba12]

Thank you for the suggestion of Art Lab for Little kids! It looks awesome though I think I might give it a couple of years. But I did find these two books, Early Childhood Art. One focuses on collage and construction, the other on painting and printmaking. I think these will work great, and now I can't wait to use Art Lab when my little one a touch older

 

 

http://www.rainbowresource.com/proddtl.php?id=052591

http://www.rainbowresource.com/proddtl.php?id=052590

 

Also, if anyone is looking at this thread for ideas, I found something else which looks really cool - Art with Anything

http://www.rainbowresource.com/proddtl.php?id=046848

[GPMommy]

I second the preschool art book by MaryAnn Kohl!

[MissKNG]

I would start making a "craft drawer". We have one and I fill it with all sorts of odds and ends that I am constantly collecting - lids, string, egg cartons, yogurt containers, fabric scraps, bubble wrap, TP and paper towel rolls, buttons, stickers, etc. And I have the "usual" things like crayons, markers, glue, tape, construction paper, white paper, etc. 

 

The girls get what they want and create from the supplies in the drawer. That's all we do for art right now.

[bttrflyvld]

We're going to use art for the very young by Elizabeth Kelly. its for ages 3 to 6. We haven't used it yet but it really looks fun and simple and is really easy to use.

[Saraswati]

Home Art Studio is a cute program for smaller kids. The projects were fun, creative, and engaging, but they were simple enough for my then 3 year old to do all on his own. The supply list that's needed for the projects is short, and very inexpensive. They have the program listed on HSBC for 50% off right now.

 

https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/home-art-studio/?c=1

[Walking-Iris]

How to Use Childsized Masterpieces is a preschool specific art appreciation Montessori based program. My dd has been able to follow along with Harmony Fine Arts and Drawing With Children.

 

Also the book Little Hands Art Book is helpful for more crafty things for that age.

 

Pinterest is a great resource.

 

Kinderart.com is a free online database of art lessons for various ages. 

 

Or you could just order monthly Kiwi Crate boxes. 

[KathyBC]

If you're not interested in art history and adverse to spending money, could you check out craft books from the library?

 

The Little Hands Art Book by Judy Press is a good one.