ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

 

Disclaimer: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

My family had the privilege of trying the Art of the Northern Countries from Artistic Pursuits Inc. for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. creates art curriculum for children. This full-color curriculum helps children to grow their skills of observation and critical thinking. It teaches all components of fine art, including creativity, art history, art appreciation, and art techniques. This unique homeschool art program permits the student to be expressive and make up their own decision about what and how they will draw, paint, or sculpt.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray by Brenda Ellis are brand new hardcover books for kindergarten and elementary students. These have art history and art instruction lessons in text with pictures to study and video lessons on how to use the art materials. There are a total of 8 volumes currently:

• K-3 Vol. 1 ART FOR CHILDREN, Building a Visual Vocabulary
• K-3 Vol. 2 ART OF THE ANCIENTS
• K-3 Vol. 3 ART OF THE MIDDLE AGES
• K-3 Vol. 4 ARTISTS THAT SHAPED THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
• K-3 Vol. 5 ART OF THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES, RENAISSANCE TO REALISM
• K-3 Vol. 6 ART OF THE IMPRESSIONISTS
• K-3 Vol. 7 ART OF THE MODERN AGE
• K-3 Vol. 8 ART IN AMERICA

Each book covers one whole semester of art if you have your student do one lesson a week. You can do these lessons chronologically starting with volume 1 and follow the history volumes in order or do volume 1 and then skip to the volume of choice after that. It is all up to you.

Art of the Northern Countries is the fifth volume of the series. It is a hardcover book with both Blu-ray and DVD. It has 64 pages, 18 lessons (12 text lessons featuring artworks by ancient artists and 6 video lessons featuring art instruction on materials), and 86 illustrations. This art curriculum book and videos takes a look at of the Northern Countries of Europe from renaissance to realism. The book covers monoprints, observation drawing, relief prints, and more. Young learners will discover where the long lasting tradition of Realism in Western art began as they create and respond to art of the Northern Countries of Europe. They will experience art from famous artists like: Durer, Tuner, Millet, and Carot. Children will work with printmaking, watercolor, charcoal, and oil pastel.

K-3 Vol.5 Art Supply Pack | ARTistic Pursuits

K-3 Vol. 2 Art Supply Pack (can be purchased separately or with the book for additional cost) Includes:

• Prang Pan Watercolors, set of 8
• Blick Vine Charcoal sticks
• Watercolor Paper Pad, 30 sheets
  
• Sketch Paper Pad, 30 sheets
• Speedball Hard Rubber Brayer
• Water Soluble Printing Ink in teal, yellow, and black
• Foam Printing Sheets, set of 12, 9" x 12"
  
• 15" x 15" cotton fabric burnt orange cotton tote bag

You will also need these materials from K-3 Vol. 1 Starter Pack Materials list:

• Ebony pencil
• Watercolor brush, #8 round
• Watercolor paper pad
• Drawing paper pad
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Elmer's Glue-All

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries Lessons 1-4.

 

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

I did this art instruction for kids with my daughters Zari and Teela who are in 4th and 7th grade this school year. We did one lesson a week and completed 4 lessons. We did what we could with what we had at home and I also bought some supplies as well. My kids love art so they enjoyed these activities and learning about the art and history very much.

The lessons without videos have prep notes with tips and information about the type of art. It also has notes on how to instruct a larger group. Then there is the art history lesson on the next page with pictures of an art piece and questions at the end in bold. After the history lesson the book has a page of how to do the art. Each art lesson has a box of text that will list the materials needed for that art project, an example picture of the art made by a student, pictures of the art being assembled and instructions with more insight into the history. The lessons that have videos are truncated in the book and have a minimal amount of information to show you what art will be created and what materials are needed to make the art. These are used with the DVD or Blu-ray.

 

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries Online Course.

We also received access to the Online Course for the Art of the Northern Countries. When you login you get to a page that says "My Art Courses". This lets you click on view product and sends you to that course page. This page lets you start the course online with some bonuses. First it has a "Course Introduction" which has "Welcome to the Course", "Your Instructor", and "Course Book and Contents" in video format. The next category in the Online Course is "The Art of Seeing". This section has 2 bonus video lessons: "First Landscapes" and "Discovering Light". The next section is called, "The Fundamentals" and it has all of the same video lessons online as the DVD to follow along with the book lessons. The next category is called "Advanced Tips" and has a video on "Why Light and Dark Need Each Other". Last is a "Course Wrap Up" and has a video called, "What's Next". It will automatically mark these video lessons as complete once they are watched or you can mark as complete yourself. After they are completed they will have a check mark show up beside them in the course menu. We loved having the option to watch these videos online.

 

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries, K-3 Vol. 5: Lesson 1 (monoprint).

 

The first lesson we had an introduction of art in Europe around the Northern Renaissance and learned how to use a brayer roller and black water-soluble printing ink to make a monoprint using plants and stencils. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #1) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. We liked the videos and thought they were very thorough, educational, and nicely done. The video had the art history and art instruction to show how to use the brayer roller and black water-soluble printing ink. Teela did this lesson and she did a butterfly as her stencil. She found plants in our yard to use as well. Hers didn't quite come out as crisp as the one shown in the video and book, but she at least got to understand monoprints and how they work.

 

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries, K-3 Vol. 5: Lesson 2 (observation drawing with oil pastels).

The second lesson in the book we learned about Durer and his painting, "The Large Piece of Turf". We read in the art book how Durer was inspired by art that looked like the real world and how he choose to paint plants when others were painting people. There are questions at the end in bold of this art history lesson about the "The Large Piece of Turf" painting in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told with words and shown with color pictures in the book how to make a frame out of construction paper and draw plants with oil pastels. Teela did this art outside and picked plants in our "fairy garden" to draw.

 

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries, K-3 Vol. 5: Lesson 3 (oil pastel drawing, snow scene).

The third lesson we learned about Bruegel's painting, "Hunters in the Snow". There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told with words and shown with color pictures in the book how to make an oil pastel drawing of a winter scene. Zari made a snowy cabin in the woods with snow falling and a moon.

 

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Northern Countries, K-3 Vol. 5: Lesson 4 (relief print).

The forth lesson we learned more about relief prints. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #2) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. In this lesson you make a white figure of a pet on a dark background. The video had the art and art instruction to show how to prepare the wax paper surface with the registration sheet, make a printing plate with foam printing sheets, and use the brayer. Zari decided she wanted to do our bunny, Norman, who had passed away. I helped make the printing plate. It asked us to use a picture of a light colored pet. We have a white horse, but Zari wanted to do Norman instead, so even though he was a black and white rabbit I think she did a good job as the correct areas of him were white and black.

There was only one thing that I would change if I was the author. My daughters and I wished that all the lessons had videos because we are very visual and the videos made the instruction so much easier, but we would also have liked those that did have videos to have the whole instruction and art history lesson in the book as well. This would make it easier to use with those children that are too young to read and those that learn better by reading than by visual and audio as well would benefit if both were used for all lessons. This would help our learners of all types.

So far ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Northern Countries has been very educational and fun. We have learned so much about the art of the time. I highly recommend this art for children. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Northern Countries would be a great art curriculum for use with art history lessons and unit studies of Renaissance, Realism, and Europe.

Follow Them on Social Media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtisticPursuitsInc
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARTisticPursui1 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artisticpursuitsinc/ 
• Hashtags: #hsreviews #myartisticpursuits #homeschoolart #artinstruction #ART #Homeschool #ARTEDUCATION #artisticpursuits #creativity

BUY IT
You can purchase ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray. They are each $39.99. If you would like to purchase the art kits with these it is more and depends on the kit.

Read other homeschool curriculum reviews for ARTistic Pursuits Inc....

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Ancients Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

My family had the privilege of trying the Art of the Ancients from Artistic Pursuits Inc. for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. creates art curriculum for children. This full-color curriculum helps children to grow their skills of observation and critical thinking. It teaches all components of fine art, including creativity, art history, art appreciation, and art techniques. This unique homeschool art program permits the student to be expressive and make up their own decision about what and how they will draw, paint, or sculpt.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray by Brenda Ellis are brand new hardcover books for kindergarten and elementary students. These have art history and art instruction lessons in text with pictures to study and video lessons on how to use the art materials. There are a total of 8 volumes currently:

• K-3 Vol. 1 ART FOR CHILDREN, Building a Visual Vocabulary
• K-3 Vol. 2 ART OF THE ANCIENTS
• K-3 Vol. 3 ART OF THE MIDDLE AGES
• K-3 Vol. 4 ARTISTS THAT SHAPED THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
• K-3 Vol. 5 ART OF THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES, RENAISSANCE TO REALISM
• K-3 Vol. 6 ART OF THE IMPRESSIONISTS
• K-3 Vol. 7 ART OF THE MODERN AGE
• K-3 Vol. 8 ART IN AMERICA

Each book covers one whole semester of art if you have your student do one lesson a week. You can do these lessons chronologically starting with volume 1 and follow the history volumes in order or do volume 1 and then skip to the volume of choice after that. It is all up to you.

Art of the Ancients is the second volume of the series. It is a hardcover book with both Blu-ray and DVD. It has 64 pages, 18 lessons (12 text lessons featuring artworks by ancient artists and 6 video lessons featuring art instruction on materials), and 106 illustrations. This art curriculum book and videos takes a look at art found in caves to the classical art of the Roman Empire. The book covers Near Eastern figures and relief carvings, Minoan fresco painting, Etruscan and Egyptian wall painting, Greek pillars and pottery, as well as the many methods of making art in Rome. Young learners will create and respond to art of the ancient cultures as they express themselves and see the world in new ways. They also learn about the period and how the people then made art. Children will work with pastels and clay.

K-3 Vol.2 Art Supply Pack | ARTistic Pursuits

K-3 Vol. 2 Art Supply Pack (can be purchased separately or with the book for additional cost) Includes:

• Wire clay cutter
• Amaco Air-dry clay
• NuPastel hard pastel color sticks, set of 12
• 15 x 15" cotton fabric Blue Cotton Tote Bag

You will also need these materials from K-3 Vol. 1 Starter Pack Materials list:

• Watercolor crayons
• Oil pastels
• Ebony pencil
• Vinyl eraser
• Watercolor brush, #8 round
• Watercolor paper pad
• Drawing paper pad
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Elmer's Glue-All
• Glue stick

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

I did this art instruction for kids with my daughters Teela and Zari who are in 3rd and 6th grade this school year. We tried to do one lesson a week, but our clay did not come to us in the mail because of back-orders and delays with COVID-19. We did what we could with what we had at home. My kids love art so they enjoyed these activities and learning about the art and history very much.

The lessons without videos have prep notes with tips and information about the type of art. It also has notes on how to instruct a larger group. Then there is the art history lesson on the next page with pictures of an art piece and questions at the end in bold. After the history lesson the book has a page of how to do the art. Each art lesson has a box of text that will list the materials needed for that art project, an example picture of the art made by a student, pictures of the art being assembled and instructions with more insight into the history. The lessons that have videos are truncated in the book and have a minimal amount of information to show you what art will be created and what materials are needed to make the art. These are used with the DVD or Blu-ray.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Ancients, K-3 Vol. 2: Lesson 1 (something with wheels with pastels).

The first lesson we had an introduction of art in the ancient world and learned how to use soft pastels to make a picture of something with wheels. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #1) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. We liked the videos and thought they were very thorough, educational, and nicely done. The video had the art history and art instruction to show how to use the pastels. Zari did the Fire Truck.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Ancients, K-3 Vol. 2: Lesson 2 (cave art).

The second lesson in the book we learned about European cave drawings. We read in the art book of 4 boys in France that discovered some cave art. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the bull and horse cave painting in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told with words and shown with color pictures in the book how to do cave art on brown paper with earth colored pastels. I did the zebra and Teela did the panda bear.

The third lesson we learned about clay slab building. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #2) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. In this lesson you build a clay figure out of slabs. The video had the art and art instruction to show how to use and care for the clay and other items to make the figure. Since we didn't have the clay we just watched the video for the instructions for future reference.

The forth lesson we learned about the city of Jericho and the Human Statue found there. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told with words and shown with color pictures in the book how to do a human figure in clay. Since we didn't have the clay we just read the book and looked at the pictures for future reference.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art of the Ancients, K-3 Vol. 2: Lesson 5 (animal art with pastels).

In the fifth lesson we learned about art in Minoan palaces. In this lesson we learned about a painting called Bull Jumping that was found in the Island of Crete. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the painting in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. We were instructed to make an animal painting with pastels. I did the hedgehog and Zari did the Toucan.

There was only one thing that I would change if I was the author. My daughters and I wished that all the lessons had videos because we are very visual and the videos made the instruction so much easier, but we would also have liked those that did have videos to have the whole instruction and art history lesson in the book as well. This would make it easier to use with those children that are too young to read and those that learn better by reading than by visual and audio as well would benefit if both were used for all lessons. This would help our learners of all types.

So far ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages has been very educational and fun. We have learned so much about the art of the time. I highly recommend this art for children. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Ancients would be a great art curriculum for use with art history lessons and unit studies of the Early Europeans, Minoans, Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Greeks, Etruscans, and Ancient Romans.

Follow Them on Social Media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtisticPursuitsInc
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARTisticPursui1 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artisticpursuitsinc/ 
• Hashtags: #hsreviews #myartisticpursuits #homeschoolart #artinstruction #ART #Homeschool #ARTEDUCATION #artisticpursuits #creativity

BUY IT
You can purchase ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray. They are each $39.99. If you would like to purchase the art kits with these it is more and depends on the kit.

Read other homeschool curriculum reviews for ARTistic Pursuits Inc....

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4 Review

My family had the privilege of trying the Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4 of the K-3rd Grade Level, Volumes 1-8 from ARTistic Pursuits Inc. for this review to use in conjunction with our own homeschool curriculum. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. creates art curriculum for children. This full-color curriculum helps children to grow their skills of observation and critical thinking. It teaches all components of fine art, including creativity, art history, art appreciation, and art techniques. This unique homeschool art program permits the student to be expressive and make up their own decision about what and how they will draw, paint, or sculpt.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray by Brenda Ellis are hardcover books for kindergarten and elementary students. These have art history and art instruction lessons in text with pictures to study and video lessons on how to use the art materials. There are a total of 8 volumes currently:

• K-3 Vol. 1 ART FOR CHILDREN, Building a Visual Vocabulary
• K-3 Vol. 2 ART OF THE ANCIENTS
• K-3 Vol. 3 ART OF THE MIDDLE AGES
• K-3 Vol. 4 ARTISTS THAT SHAPED THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
• K-3 Vol. 5 ART OF THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES, RENAISSANCE TO REALISM
• K-3 Vol. 6 ART OF THE IMPRESSIONISTS
• K-3 Vol. 7 ART OF THE MODERN AGE
• K-3 Vol. 8 ART IN AMERICA

Each book covers one whole semester of art if you have your student do one lesson a week. You can do these lessons chronologically starting with volume 1 and follow the history volumes in order or do volume 1 and then skip to the volume of choice after that. It is all up to you.

Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance is the forth volume of the series. It is a hardcover book with both Blu-ray and DVD. It has 64 pages, 18 lessons (12 text lessons featuring artworks by Italian Renaissance masters and 6 video lessons featuring art instruction on materials), and 86 full-color illustrations. This art curriculum book and videos takes a look at art produced in the Italian Renaissance, from the Cimabue's tilt of the head in the 13th century to the foreshortened and exaggerated forms of Parmigianino in the 16th century. Young learners will create and respond to art of this period as they increase their skills in motivation, concentration, and discovery, etc. They also learn about the period and how the people then made art. Children will work with watercolors, resist, fresco, scratch art, and oil pastels.

K-3 Vol.4 Art Supply Pack | ARTistic Pursuits

 
K-3 Vol. 4 Art Supply Pack (can be purchased separately or with the book for additional cost) Includes:

• Prang pan watercolor set
• Watercolor paper pad
• Two 9"x12" hardboard panels
• Small 8oz. spackling paste
• Small plastic putty knife
• Scratch-Art Paper
• Gold origami paper
• Purple cotton tote bag

You will also need these materials from K-3 Vol. 1 Starter Pack Materials list:

• Oil pastel set
• Drawing paper
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Watercolor brush, round #8
• Elmer's Glue All
• Glue stick

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lessons 1-5

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:


I did this art instruction for kids with my daughters Teela and Zari who are in 5th and 2nd grade this school year. We did one lesson a week which got us through the 5th lesson. My kids love art so they enjoyed these activities and learning about the art very much. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4 would be a great art curriculum for use with art history lessons and a unit study for the Italian Renaissance.

The lessons without videos have prep notes with tips and information about the type of art. It also has notes on how to instruct a larger group. Then there is the art history lesson on the next page with pictures of an art piece and questions at the end in bold. After the history lesson the book has a page of how to do the art. Each art lesson has a box of text that will list the materials needed for that art project, an example picture of the art made by a student, pictures of the art being assembled and instructions with more insight into the history. The lessons that have videos are truncated in the book and have a minimal amount of information to show you what art will be created and what materials are needed to make the art. These are used with the DVD or Blu-ray.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lesson 1 (Watercolor Self-Portrait).

The first lesson we had an introduction of the Italian Renaissance and learned how to make a watercolor self-portrait. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #1) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. We liked the videos and thought they were very thorough, educational, and nicely done. The video had the art history and art instruction to show how to use watercolors properly so they won't bleed into the next color and so you stay in the lines.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lesson 2 (Gold Leaf Painting)

The second lesson in the book we learned about Giovanni Cimabue. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of a painting, called Madonna Enthroned, with Saints and Angels by Cimabue in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told and shown how to make a gold leaf watercolor painting. We couldn't find the gold leaf paper so we ended up using a cut up gold colored reversible table cloth for the gold objects in the picture.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lesson 3 (Gesture Painting)

The third lesson we learned about Giotto di Bondone and gesture painting. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of the Lamentation of Christ. Then we are told and shown how to do a watercolor gesture painting.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lesson 4 (Calendar Page)

In the forth lesson we learned about Paul, Jean, and Herman Limbourg & the Book of Hours. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of October (the Tres Riches Heures of Jean, Duke of Berry). Then we are told and shown how to do a watercolor calendar page.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4: Lesson 5 (Symbol Painting)

In the fifth lesson we learned about Jan van Eyck. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of The Arnolfini Portrait. Then we are told and shown how to do a symbol watercolor painting.

There was only one thing that I would change if I was the author. My daughter and I wished that all the lessons had videos because we are very visual and the videos made the instruction so much easier, but we would also have liked those that did have videos to have the whole instruction and art history lesson in the book as well. This would make it easier to use with those children that are too young to read and those that learn better by reading than by visual and audio as well would benefit if both were used for all lessons. This would help our learners of all types.

So far ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Artists that Shaped the Italian Renaissance, K-3 Vol. 4 has been very educational and fun. We have learned so much about the art of the time. I highly recommend this art for children. It is perfect for our art at home instruction and to go along with our unit study history lessons about the Italian Renaissance.

Follow Them on Social Media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtisticPursuitsInc @ArtisticPursuitsInc
• Twitter: @ARTistic Pursui1

Suggested Hashtags: #hsreview #myartisticpursuits #homeschoolart #artinstruction

BUY IT
You can purchase the K-3rd Grade Level, Volumes 1-8. They are each $39.99. If you would like to purchase the art kits with these it is more and depends on the kit.

Read other homeschool curriculum reviews for ARTistic Pursuits Inc....

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Review

My family had the privilege of trying the Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages from ARTistic Pursuits Inc. for this review to use in conjunction with our own homeschool curriculum. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. creates art curriculum for children. This full-color curriculum helps children to grow their skills of observation and critical thinking. It teaches all components of fine art, including creativity, art history, art appreciation, and art techniques. This unique homeschool art program permits the student to be expressive and make up their own decision about what and how they will draw, paint, or sculpt.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray by Brenda Ellis are brand new hardcover books for kindergarten and elementary students. These have art history and art instruction lessons in text with pictures to study and video lessons on how to use the art materials. There are a total of 6 volumes currently with two more on their way:

• K-3 Vol. 1 ART FOR CHILDREN, Building a Visual Vocabulary
• K-3 Vol. 2 ART OF THE ANCIENTS
• K-3 Vol. 3 ART OF THE MIDDLE AGES
• K-3 Vol. 4 ARTISTS THAT SHAPED THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
• K-3 Vol. 5 ART OF THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES, RENAISSANCE TO REALISM
• K-3 Vol. 6 ART OF THE IMPRESSIONISTS
• K-3 Vol. 7 ART OF THE MODERN AGE (Coming in the summer of 2018!)
• K-3 Vol. 8 ART IN AMERICA (Coming in the summer of 2018!)

Each book covers one whole semester of art if you have your student do one lesson a week. You can do these lessons chronologically starting with volume 1 and follow the history volumes in order or do volume 1 and then skip to the volume of choice after that. It is all up to you.

Art of the Middle Ages is the third volume of the series. It is a hardcover book with both Blu-ray and DVD. It has 64 pages, 18 lessons (12 text lessons featuring artworks by medieval masters and 6 video lessons featuring art instruction on materials), and 106 illustrations. This art curriculum book and videos takes a look at art produced in the Middle Ages, from the early Migration Period to the Gothic architecture of France. Young learners will create and respond to medieval art as they increase their skills in motivation, concentration, and discovery, etc. They also learn about the period and how the people then made art. Children will work with colored paper, needlework, weaving, and oil pastels.

K-3 Vol.3 Art Supply Pack | ARTistic Pursuits

K-3 Vol.3 Art Supply Pack (can be purchased separately or with the book for additional cost) Includes:

• Gesso, small bottle
• Gold acrylic paint, 2 oz
• Tissue paper (assorted colors)
• Sculpey, white, 2 oz
• Flat watercolor brush, 1/2 inch
• Mod Podge, matte finish
• Small tip squeeze bottle
• Plastic sewing needle, large
• Bristle brush, 1 inch
• Lightweight chipboard
• Gold origami paper
• Purple cotton tote bag

You will also need these materials from K-3 Vol. 1 Starter Pack Materials list:

• crayons
• oil pastel set
• scissors
• watercolor brush #8 round
• watercolor paper
• construction paper
• eraser
• Ebony pencil
• Elmer's Glue All
• glue stick

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lessons 1-5

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:
I did this art instruction for kids with my daughters Teela and Zari who were in 1st and 4th grade this past school year. We did one lesson a week which got us through the 5th lesson. My kids love art so this was a great activity to get them busy during the summer. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages would be a great art curriculum for use with art history lessons and a unit study for the Middle Ages or medieval times.

The lessons without videos have prep notes with tips and information about the type of art. It also has notes on how to instruct a larger group. Then there is the art history lesson on the next page with pictures of an art piece and questions at the end in bold. After the history lesson the book has a page of how to do the art. Each art lesson has a box of text that will list the materials needed for that art project, an example picture of the art made by a student, pictures of the art being assembled and instructions with more insight into the history. The lessons that have videos are truncated in the book and have a minimal amount of information to show you what art will be created and what materials are needed to make the art. These are used with the DVD or Blu-ray.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lesson 1 (Paper Loom Weave and Crown).

The first lesson we had an introduction of the medieval world and learned how to weave with a paper loom. This lesson was accompanied by a video (video #1) on the DVD or Blu-ray. This gave us very visual step-by-step instruction of the process. We liked the videos and thought they were very thorough, educational, and nicely done. The video had the art history and art instruction to show how to do a weave on a paper loom and a crown that uses the weave, cutting diamonds, using tissue paper as a sort of a window. We couldn't find the gold origami paper so we ended up using shiny wrapping paper for the weave in the crown.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lesson 2 (Weaving Beasts).

The second lesson in the book we learned about the migration of people, art in battles, and art during the Migration Period. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of a metal brooch in the book to make sure the children are paying attention to the art. Then we are told and shown how to do woven beasts out of construction paper.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lesson 3 (Initial Page).

The third lesson we learned about art in monasteries, medieval illumination, and initial pages. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of a medieval illumination. Then we are told and shown how to do a initial page with the first letter of the artists name. We couldn't find the gold origami paper so we ended up using shiny wrapping paper for the letter. 

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lesson 4 (Mosaic).

In the forth lesson we learned about art in Basilicas and Byzantine mosaics. There are questions at the end in bold of the this art history lesson about the picture of the Theotokos Mosaic. Then we are told and shown how to do a mosaic of a person out of construction paper.

ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages Lesson 5 (Panel Drawing).

In the fifth lesson we watched video #2. We learned about Gothic panels in this lesson. We were instructed to make a panel drawing with tissue paper to create the background and a picture of a colorful song bird drawn on it.

There was only one thing that I would change if I was the author. My daughters and I wished that all the lessons had videos because we are very visual and the videos made the instruction so much easier, but we would also have liked those that did have videos to have the whole instruction and art history lesson in the book as well. This would make it easier to use with those children that are too young to read and those that learn better by reading than by visual and audio as well would benefit if both were used for all lessons. This would help our learners of all types.

So far ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray Art of the Middle Ages has been very educational and fun. We have learned so much about the art of the time. I highly recommend this art for children. It is perfect for our homeschool art and to go along with our unit study history lessons about the Middle Ages.

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BUY IT
You can purchase ARTistic Pursuits Art Instruction Books with DVD and Blu-Ray. They are each $39.99. If you would like to purchase the art kits with these it is more and depends on the kit.

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ARTistic Pursuits Inc. K-3 Book One Review

My family had the privilege of trying the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. K-3 Book One for this review to use in conjunction with our own homeschool curriculum. This is a Schoolhouse Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. creates art curriculum for children. This full-color curriculum helps children to grow their skills of observation and critical thinking. It teaches all components of fine art, including creativity, art history, art appreciation, and art techniques. This unique homeschool art program permits the student to be expressive and make up their own decision about what and how they will draw, paint, or sculpt.

The Early Elementary K-3 Book One is one of the many art curriculum books you can purchase from ARTistic Pursuits Inc. This Introduction to the Visual Arts book is by Brenda Ellis. It has a comb-binding that allows the book to stay flat when open.

It is 95 pages long with 36 five to ten minute lessons. The lessons are accompanied by 185 illustrations and full-color works from master artists. They cover four different groups: drawing, painting (watercolor), paper art, and clay. Each group has a selection of things that are listed on a materials page that you will need in addition to the book for your student to do the projects. Each project is given a group number and list of items so that there are no surprises and you can be prepared before each lesson. Projects take thirty to sixty minutes, depending upon child's method and how much they can focus without getting distracted. Additional items are listed as well for each group that you should have at hand.

Art Supplies Needed to Buy For Use With This Book:

GROUP #1 DRAWING (lessons: 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 14, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, and 29)

• two ebony pencils
• vinyl eraser
• soft pastels (set of 12, not professional grade)
• oil pastels (Cray-Pas, Junior Artist, set of 25)
• sketch or drawing paper pad

GROUP #2 PAINTING (lessons: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 11, 12, 13, 18, 24, and 35)

• Caran d'ache Neocolor II Water-soluble Watercolor Crayons (set of 10)
• #8 round watercolor brush that comes to a point
• Canson XL watercolor paper pad (30 sheets)

GROUP #3 PAPER ART (lessons: 15, 16, 28, 32, 34, and 36)

• heavy-weight, fade-proof construction paper (assorted colors including black)
• tissue paper (assorted colors)
• scissors (Fiskars for children are recommended)

GROUP #4 CLAY (lessons: 23, 27, 28, 30, and 31)

• 5lbs. gray self-hardening clay (option to substitute red self-hardening clay for lesson 28 and white self-hardening clay or a flour dough recipe for lesson 23)

This book is parted out into three sections. These sections are: What Artists Do, What Artists See, and Where We Find Art. In the What Artists Do section are chapters 1-14 (fourteen lessons) in which the student explores activities artists do when making art. This section also teaches the student the proper way to use watercolor crayons, pastels, and pencil in drawing and painting landscapes, people, and still life. In the What Artists See section are chapters 15-21 (seven lessons) in which the student explores elements that artists use in two and three dimensional work such as shape, form, line, and color. This section teaches the child to handle scissors, glue, fold paper forms, draw materials, and use a brush while doing collage, paper works, drawing, and color mixing. In the Where We Find Art section are chapters 22-36 (fifteen lessons) in which the student explores places we find art, like: caves, pyramids, cathedrals, etc., covering ancient art of prehistoric times to book illumination of the Middle Ages. This section teaches the child to use chalk pastels, oil pastels, clay, and paper works while making murals, pottery, clay models, paper art, bookbinding, and mosaics.

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

Since Teela (my 8 year old daughter), Zari (my 5 year old daughter), and I only had six weeks before this review was due to explore the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. Early Elementary K-3 Book One, we only had time to do a part of the first section. I didn't have the money to get all the art supplies I needed all at once, so I bought the ones I was told I would need for the first set of lessons. This happened to be just three supplies: the Caran d'ache Neocolor II Water-soluble Watercolor Crayons (set of 10), a #8 round watercolor brush, and a Canson XL watercolor paper pad (30 sheets). I got them at a discount by clicking the Blick U button at the bottom of the art supply packs page on the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. website.

Some of the art Zari did with the watercolor crayons.

The lesson projects build on themselves and so we went in the order they were presented and did one lesson a week. We found though that by lesson 3 (and also for lesson 6) we needed supplies that we had not purchased ahead of time. So, instead of the ebony pencil, vinyl eraser, and sketch/drawing pad we were forced to use regular pencils, a pink rubber eraser, and copy paper. It was all I had at home at the time and we do not have an art supply store near us. These alternate supplies worked just fine, in my opinion. Each section does, however; stand on its own and can be done in any order. To get the most out of the material you should finish a whole section.

Some of the art Teela did with the watercolor crayons.

My girls loved the short lessons about What Artists Do and projects that followed. They loved using the watercolor crayons the most because it was a new experience for them and they love to paint. The layout was really easy to follow. First I would read them the lesson. Then I would read to them about a famous artist composition or other observations in the book while they looked at it and answered questions about it . Next I would read about the project they would be completing and show them the pictures of examples in the book and then they would do the project once I handed out the materials.

ARTistic Pursuits Inc. K-3 Book One is a wonderful introduction book for kindergartners through third graders to the visual arts. It is a thorough art curriculum for this age. I enjoyed teaching these lessons and my girls enjoyed learning and being artistic making different watercolor art and drawing. We are excited to do more and experience other mediums like clay and paper working.

BUY IT
The Early Elementary K-3 Book one is $47.95 and can be purchased through the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. website. ARTistic Pursuits Inc. has other art instruction books in Sculpture Techniques, Elementary Art, Middle School Art, and High School Art as well that you can purchase.

Art materials are required for the Early Elementary K-3 Book One. You can find most of these at your local craft store. There is also an Art Supply Pack for each book sold on the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. website. The price for the Art Supply Pack which includes all the art supplies you need for the K-3 Book One is $89 + $13.50 for priority flat rate (medium box) shipping & handling. The art supply pack includes all of the art supplies needed plus an I'm an artist! cotton tote bag to put it all into. You can also buy these art supplies individually when you need them at a discount by clicking the Blick U button at the bottom of the art supply packs page on the ARTistic Pursuits Inc. website.

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