My daughter loves whenever we get to review anything art-related. She is the crafting queen and has built her repertoire of skills throughout her 10 years of age. Whether she's knitting or embroidering, drawing or painting, designing capes and masks for her brothers and even twisting balloon animals, you can daily find her sparking her creativity in one art form or another.
One medium she did not have much experience with though was clay. Oh, sure, she's made her fair share of play dough creations, but she wanted the satisfaction of working with a firmer substance and having the opportunity to preserve her achievements. When I saw that we could chose a book from ARTistic Pursuits Inc. art curriculum, I immediately looked through the K-3 Grade Level, Volumes 1-8 to find one heavy in clay creations.
ARTistic Pursuits was developed by Daniel and Brenda Ellis in 1999. What began as a single drawing book for high schoolers has evolved into full curricula from preschool all the way through high school. Their goal is to "develop experiences in the visual arts that allow children to create original works of art." Their program is designed to help students understand art concepts and enjoy the process of putting their own ideas and visual images on paper.
The Art of the Ancients, K-3 Volume 2 is the second book in the kindergarten to third grade art program. This curriculum currently contains eight volumes. It is a four-year elementary course with one book for each semester and one lesson per week. Once your child finishes the first book, Art for Children, he can either work through the others chronologically or choose to study the various time periods of art in any order.
The books are hard cover and include both a Blu-ray and DVD with additional lessons. They are filled with many illustrations, from photographs of original art to recreations to examples from young children.
This specific book includes 18 projects. They are broken into 12 text lessons and 6 video lessons. The study focuses on cultures that developed around the Mediterranean Sea and its tributaries. Students will learn about European cave drawings, Egyptians murals, Mesopotamian relief carvings, Greek pillars and pottery, and more. Children are encouraged to see the world in new ways and express their ideas.
One thing that I love is that each text lesson begins with a history of the particular project. These sections are bursting with information, not only the art aspects such as materials, types, purposes, and importance, but also facts about pyramids, people, nature, clothing, transportation, ways of living, and more that can be gleaned from studying the ancient art. The student is encouraged to examine the ancient art examples and strengthen his observation skills as he answers a few questions designed to get him to see more within the picture.
After this brief history lesson, the student will recreate his own version of the project by practicing the art form. Detailed step-by-step direction are given, clearly numbered with accompanying pictures. Each lesson also includes a supply list and prep notes when needed.
The video lessons are given in both DVD and Blu-Ray versions. There is a single page in the book for each of these lessons. It shows the name, a picture of the project, a list of supplies, and a simple description.
The videos themselves begin with a brief introduction before moving on to the instructional portion. Then, the student can watch Brenda as she creates the projects in real time. The steps are easy-to-follow with audible directions. The video is zoomed in to show the hands close up, so the student can see exactly how each step is preformed.
The end of each video is a re-cap of the project. A portion of each step is shown with text instructions on the screen.
While my daughter is the one with the art obsession, her younger brothers enjoy crafting from time to time, as well. As she's been working through the book, the boys join in on the crafts they find interesting. Even the 4-year-old is enjoying these lessons so much that he made a project on his own. I've been letting the kids choose which projects to complete as they wish. They have drawn watercolor portraits, crafted a clay statue, formed multiple pinch pots and other formations, designed mosaic pictures, and created relief art.
We were able to use some supplies like watercolor crayons and watercolor paper from when we studied the Art of the Middle Ages with ARTistic Pursuits last year, but they were all excited when we bought a 5-lb container of clay to add to our materials. They couldn't wait to break off a chunk and start molding.
I thought for sure that the little ones would only want to play with the clay and make whatever they wished, but I was surprised at how engaged they were in following the directions, both in the book and the videos. (Of course, there was much free play, too!) The kids watch the videos on the computer so they can create their projects while they watch and pause the instruction, as needed.
Not only are my kids learning new skills and bits of history, but they're having fun while doing it! The curriculum is easy to use, too. In fact, the kids can make the projects completely on their own by following the instructions in both the text and the videos. It's geared toward the K-3 grade range, but even my 5th grade, craft-loving girl is excited to make the projects and is interested in the historical facts and art instruction.
Studying the Art of the Ancients with ARTistic Pursuits Inc. has been greatly enjoyed in our home.
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You can read more reviews of this volume along with the other books in the ARTistic Pursuits series on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.
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