Homeschool Art Supplies You Need

I am not an artist. I can draw passable stick figures — oh, and trees; I can also draw trees — but that’s about it. My kids are no artistic wonders either. But we all enjoy sitting down with a few art supplies to let our creativity flow. I make it a point to keep a few basic supplies on hand.

Papers:

manila paper
drawing paper
newsprint paper
construction paper
cardstock

Get started with the proper foundation. Cardstock for watercolors, newsprint for a budding reporter, manila paper for treasure maps. My kids typically sit down knowing exactly what kind of paper they want to produce the art they have in mind. While plain old printer paper will work for most jobs, having the right paper for the project just makes the whole thing more enjoyable!

Bonus: pretty scrapbooking paper, brown paper lunch sacks, index cards, art canvases, tagboard

Writing Utensils:

markers
crayons
colored pencils
pencils
chalk

The most important thing after something to write on is something to write with! Does your project call for the bold rich colors of a markers? the smoothness of colored pencils? or the texture of a crayon? Having a variety on hand can inspire the imagination of budding artists of all ages.

Bonus: Do-A-Dot markers, stencils

Office Supplies:

scissors
paper clips
binder clips
hole punch(es)
staples

What may look like boring office supplies to you is a world of wonder to a kid! Paper clips, staplers, binder clips and more inspire all kinds of fun and fanciful artwork!

Bonus: brass fasteners, ink pads and stamps, envelopes

Adhesives:

school glue
glue sticks
masking tape
scotch tape

Now that you’ve cut things to pieces with scissors (construction paper confetti anyone??), you’ve got to have a way to put it all back together again. Collages, paper “quilt” squares, finger puppets, and more can be fashioned with help from a little adhesive.

Bonus: glue dots, washi tape

Painting Supplies:

water colors
tempera paint
paint brushes
Q-tips

No artistic experience would be complete without at least dabbling in paint. There’s something immensely satisfying about swishing your paintbrush in a cup of water and slashing color across a canvas (or piece of cardstock). Whether you’re progeny is painting the next Picasso or just seeing what you get when you mix orange, green, and yellow, you simply must have some sort of paints on hand!

Bonus: finger paints, face paints, acrylic paints, oil paints, paint palette for mixing colors

Craft Supplies:

modeling clay
air-drying clay
pipe cleaners
yarn
cotton balls
Q-tips
craft sticks

Some days I’d rather do something less artistic and more crafty, so keep plenty of fun craft supplies on hand! Twist a whole family of little pipe cleaner figures and set them to work building a home of craft sticks, complete with a kitchen sink out of clay. Or make a colorful mobile with a few popsicle sticks and some soft yarn. Let your creativity soar!

Bonus: glitter, goggly eyes, stickers, shoeboxes

What is your favorite art medium? Did I miss anything you consider essential?

Review: Seed Starting by Gary Emmett (an ebook)

As I've already confessed, I am a plant murderer . I have, however, had marginal success with container gardening. The past year or two I started seedlings with my dad, which means the kids and I dropped a few seeds in pots and my dad cared for them. Once they were established outside, I was able to keep them alive long enough to harvest a few peppers and tomatoes and have a pretty pot of flowers on my doorstep. (At least until a horrid heat-wave and drought came along and killed them all; it's hard to keep containers well-watered when it's that hot!) In spite of the 10+ inches of snow on the ground right now, it's time to think about starting seeds again and I figure if I'm ever going to develop a green thumb, I better start educating myself! That is why I jumped at the opportunity to read Gary Emmett's book Seed Starting: The First Step to Gardening . (affiliate link) Available for your Kindle or Kindle app from Amazon. Currently priced at $2...

MFW ECC: What's different this time around?

I am so excited to go through Exploring Countries and Cultures again. The last time my kids were so little -- 3rd grade and Kindergarten. And now they are in 5th and 8th grades! They have grown so much over the past five years. As I began to think about our plan for this year, I realized two things: 1) my gifted eldest child remembers just about everything we covered in ECC the first time, and 2) my younger one hasn't had many of the basics that ECC covers. So I was faced with a dilemma -- how do I adjust ECC to suit the very different needs of both children? How do I shift the focus for my 8th grader to aspects of ECC that she hadn't spent time on before (such as types of governments, imports and exports, etc.) while also taking my younger child through the more foundational information that he missed when he was just a kindergartener? ECC is designed to be parent-led, family learning, with a supplement for 7th and 8th grade. But I came to the conclusion that I need to deco...

No More Quiet Time

I have always thought it sounded trite to speak of “falling in love with Jesus.” But trite or not, isn’t that what I want for my children? To learn to “love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). With that in mind, and having run across this blog post on Pinterest several months ago, I created a morning devotion basket for the kids and I to use. You see, up till now, I would typically find time to read the Bible and pray away from my children. Away from distraction, away from the demands of dust and dirty dishes, and away from the 437 questions a four-year-old asks every day. Then I realized I was doing them a major disservice by disallowing them to see me in the Word regularly. If I want them to love the Lord God, then I must show them how I love the Lord my God! Our new routine is to wake up in the morning, prepare a simple breakfast — usually cold cereal for the kids, toast and tea for me — and sit d...

CHRISTEPHI

Search This Blog