In my ArtEd classes we were taught that it's best to guide young children in drawing, not tell them how to do it. Of course they need direction, and some kids are more likely to do well if you can give an example first, but after teaching high schoolers I think that mostly applies to older kids. Older kids are more worried about new stuff because they don't want to get it "wrong", and don't want to look stupid in front of their peers. That always made me sad to see how uncomfortable some of my students got in a class that was only supposed to be fun. It's Art, I'd say! There is no wrong way to do it! (Unless you are carving inappropriate words into the tabletop with an X-acto knife. Or throwing the X-acto into your seat mate's thigh, causing the need for 4 stitches. True story. And then, my teenaged friend, you are waaaaay off base.)
Preschoolers are so imaginative! T is almost open to trying something new. He usually asks, what does it mean?, when I say Let's paint by numbers, but he jumps right in, nowhere near actually using a paint brush correctly. But I want him to try however he wants. So, I've been really hesitant to show him how to draw things when he asks for help. I don't want to lead him to only draw houses made of squares with triangles on top, yellow circles in the sky and horizontal green lines on the paper below. (Because that is how I still draw houses). I mean, I know, this is how 3 year olds are able to representationally draw a house, using shapes they know, but I want him to try to figure it out on his own.
Rainbow
Our house
My favorite, our family. The dog gets me every time. Is he the next Calder?
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