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How many favorites can one have? Well, not sure if I've hit the limit yet, but add this one to it. This is a GREAT art program.

With Morgan having completed a couple of art studies already, but Taylor not having really been through a "start to finish" art study yet, we decided to review Grades 4-6 Book 1 The Elements of Art and Composition. Here, the elements of art and composition are explored through American art.

My challenge this year has been finding independent curriculum that I can "assign" the girls to do two days a week on their own,that they can truly learn from. This study completely fits that need. I really enjoy sitting down to go over what they've learned and done, and listening to them excitedly explain it to me !!

I purchased ebony pencils and a sketchbook for each of them, and they have really enjoyed the progression of the lessons so far. The layout of this manual is so very easy to follow with colorful pictures and fabulous examples to follow. Look at the sample pages from unit 2 here!

I LOVE the art appreciation pages showing how master artists have used the concepts being discussed in real art. There are even arrows pointing out the topics of study on real pieces of artwork!!

I also love the way the art history pages tie  biographies of artists with the time period. These are far from boring historical accounts of time and dates. I love how the girls have learned about what Americans were thinking, doing and discovering during the artist's lifetime.  This is really a neat way to present this material so the students are able to grasp the ideas and visualize the material for optimal learning. My girls are more "example" type learners than just memorizing boring dates and times. Here, they see more of a story unfolding which helps them internalize that these were "real" people living in "real" times. Very cool.

We will be ordering this whole program for use, including the K-3 books to use with Levi. This is a truly outstanding art program which is EXACTLY what our family needs to learn. Along with the previous Crew review art program we received, the kids will have a rich and full art education.

Besides detailed explanations of the books including sample pages, there are some great articles available to read, frequently asked questions, lists of art supplies required, and an extensive section on philosophy and "How we teach art" on the website.

You can meet the Ellis family here to read about the wonderful homeschooling family behind this awesome curriculum. THANK YOU Brenda, for creating this truly remarkable program!

These are also available for purchase over at the  TOS STOREwith free shipping, with exception of the Preschool book.

Enjoy your kids!

Chris