Art & Music Education

In her book The Hidden Art of Homemaking, Edith Schaeffer argues that everyone has a talent or skill ready to be discovered and put to use for the glory of God. Often, that talent lies dormant, and the individual is frustrated by the empty spot in their life it should fill. Finding your talent should be a priority, though it's no drudgery—discovering what God has made you good at is a joyful and exciting process.

Similarly, Olympic gold medalist Eric Liddell never put his running before his duty to Christ; instead, he used his talent as a sprinter to glorify God. As he expresses in the brilliant film Chariots of Fire, "I believe God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." God gives us talents to use in His name, and our joy in them is really our joy in Him.

Eric Liddell's talent led him to compete internationally; the "hidden art" Schaeffer describes is a little more modest, though no less glorifying to God when pursued humbly and gratefully. For Schaeffer, one's hidden art can be something as simple as arranging flowers on the kitchen table, or as elaborate as writing a story or painting a landscape. Everyone has different strengths, and each should learn to cultivate their own.

Our goal in teaching our children art and music isn't to raise a bunch of Van Goghs and Mozarts. If your child is a creative genius that's wonderful, but even if she can barely stay in the lines when coloring, her gifts are just as valuable to the Lord, and her discovery of them is just as important for her growth and personal happiness.

There are a few books in this section designed to help kids appreciate great art of the past, to learn about composers, or to identify the work of different painters and architects. However, most of what we offer is intended to help students across the whole range of ages to acquire and develop whatever skills they may have in sketching, painting, composing, instrument-playing, sculpting, acting, etc.

It's important to remember that no one will ever do anything perfectly, and first attempts are generally met with complete or near-total failure. Failure is often seen as an enemy, or simply as a hurdle to be overcome. Real failure, however, is integral to eventual success and (more importantly) to learning and character development. If a child managed to get everything right the first time, there would be no room for improvement, no reason to work hard.

Exercising one's creativity is essential. Humans were created in God's image, which means in part that we are creative beings, and whenever we're creative in ways that honor God, we're imitating Him. To the extent we can train our kids to do this, we should. Encourage them to do the best they can, because in the end they're doing it for God, and He expects nothing less.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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95 Items found Print
Active Filters: 11th grade (Ages 16-17), Trade Paperback
101 Hymn Stories
by Kenneth Osbeck
from Kregel Publications
for 6th-12th grade
in History of Hymns (Location: XCH-HYMN)
$16.99
101 Hymn Stories
by Kenneth Osbeck
40th Anniversary from Kregel Publications
for 6th-12th grade
in History of Hymns (Location: XCH-HYMN)
$18.99
101 More Hymn Stories
by Kenneth Osbeck
from Kregel Publications
for 6th-12th grade
in History of Hymns (Location: XCH-HYMN)
$18.99
12 Staff Manuscript Paper
by Hal Leonard Corp.
for 3rd-12th grade
in Music Theory (Location: ELE-MUSTHE)
20 Ways to Draw a Mustache and 44 Other Funny Faces and Features
by Cara Bean
from Quarry Books
for 3rd-Adult
in 20 Ways to Draw (Location: ELE-ARTDR20)
$14.00
20 Ways to Draw A Shoe and 44 Other Sneakers, Slippers, Stilettos, and Slingbacks
by Julia Kuo
Csm from Quarry Books
for 3rd-Adult
in 20 Ways to Draw (Location: ELE-ARTDR20)
$14.00
20 Ways to Draw a Strawberry and 44 Other Elegant Edibles
by Zoe Ingram
from Quarry Books
for 3rd-Adult
in 20 Ways to Draw (Location: ELE-ARTDR20)
$14.00
3-D Designs - Coloring Book
by Wil Steganga
from Dover Publications
for 4th-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$3.99
365 Promises From God's Word In Color: Scripture and Coloring Pages
from Christian Art Publishers
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$9.99
Alexander Hamilton - Coloring Book
by Steven James Petruccio
Clr Csm from Dover Publications
for 2nd-Adult
in History of America Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISA)
$5.99
Anatomy Coloring Book
by Wynn Kapit
4th edition from Pearson Education
for 9th-Adult
in Anatomy Coloring Books (Location: SCI-ANACOL)
$29.99
Annotated Mona Lisa
by Carol Strickland
2nd edition from Andrews McMeel
for 5th-12th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$16.00
Annotated Mona Lisa
by Carol Strickland
3rd edition from Andrews McMeel
for 5th-12th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$29.99
Arrow Pointing to Heaven
by James Bryan Smith
Revised from B&H Books
for 10th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$14.99
Art of Drawing People
from Walter Foster
for 7th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Art of Interpretation
by Nicholas R. Elledge
from Institute for Cultural Communicators
for 9th-12th grade
in Speech & Debate (Location: SPEECH)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Art of the Graphic Memoir
by Tom Hart
from St. Martin's Griffin
for 9th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Art of the Renaissance
by Peter and Linda Murray
1999 reprint from Thames and Hudson
for 9th-Adult
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
At Play: Teaching Teenagers Theater
by Elizabeth Swados
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 7th-Adult
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Beauty in the Bible - Coloring Book
by Paige Tate
from Paige Tate & Co.
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
Big Book of Geometric Designs and Illusions to Color
by Koichi Sato, Spyros Horemis
illustrated edition from Dover Publications
for 2nd-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$7.95
Bliss Flowers Coloring Book: Your Passport to Calm (Adult Coloring)
by Lindsey Boylan, Jessica Mazurkiewicz
Clr Csm from Dover Publications
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
Book of Music
by Gill Rowley
from Bounty Books
for 8th-Adult
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Book on the Bookshelf
by Henry Petroski
from Vintage Classics
for 10th-Adult
in History of Books & Language (Location: HISV-BOOK)
$16.95
Brit. Lit. Volume 7
by Oscar Wilde, George Sullivan
from Logos School
for 10th-12th grade
in Logos Brit. Lit. (Location: LITCUR-LOG)
$10.00
Brunelleschi's Dome
from Penguin Books
for 11th-Adult
in Renaissance & Reformation (Location: HISW-REN)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Celebration Series - Piano Repertoire 1
by RCM Examinations
from Frederick Harris Music Co
for 8th-Adult
in Clearance: Art & Music (Location: ZCLE-ART)
$12.00
Celebration Series Perspectives - Piano Repertoire 4
Piano literature for ages 12-18
in Piano Literature (Location: ELE-MUSPI)
$8.00
Celebration Series Perspectives - Piano Repertoire 5
from Frederick Harris Music Co
Piano literature for ages 13-18
in Piano Literature (Location: ELE-MUSPI)
$9.00
Color the Classics: Beauty and the Beast
Color the Classics
by Jae-Eun Lee
Clr Csm from Waves of Color
for 7th-Adult
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$13.95
Color the Pacific Northwest
by Zoe Keller
Clr Csm from Timber Press, Inc.
for 5th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$12.95
Complete Plays of Gilbert and Sullivan
by William Gilbert & Arthur Sullivan
from W. W. Norton and Co.
Drama for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$29.95
Creative Drawing
by Howard J. Smagula
from Brown & Benchmark Publishers
for 9th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Creative Haven Abstract Designs - Coloring Book
Creative Haven
by Brian Johnson
Csm from Dover Publications
for 7th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Creative Haven Arabesque Designs - Coloring Book
by Nick Crossling
First Edition, Fir from Dover Publications
for 7th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$6.99
Creative Haven Beautiful Birds - Coloring Book
Creative Haven
by Dot Barlowe
First Edition, Fir from Dover Publications
for 7th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$6.99
Dancing for Fun - Book 1
by Mark Greathouse
from Great House of Music
in Dance (Location: ELE-DANCE)
$16.95
Dancing for Fun - Book 2
by Mark Greathouse
from Great House of Music
in Dance (Location: ELE-DANCE)
$22.95
Dazzling Designs - Coloring Book
by Koichi Sato
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$3.99
Dore's Illustrations for "Paradise Lost"
by Gustave Dore
from Dover Publications
for 10th-Adult
in 17th Century Literature (Location: LIT4-17)
$14.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Draw Real People
Discover Drawing Series
by Lee Hammond
from North Light Books
for 5th-Adult
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$15.99
Drawing Expressive Portraits
by Paul Leveille
from North Light Books
for 6th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
Drawing for Older Children & Teens
by Mona Brookes
from Penguin Putnam
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
Drawing Lessons
by Willy Pogany
from Dover Publications
for 9th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$14.95
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
by Betty Edwards
from Jeremy P. Tarcher
for 7th-Adult
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$5.00 (2 in stock)
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
by Betty Edwards
from Jeremy P. Tarcher
for 6th-Adult
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$6.50 (2 in stock)
Drawing Realistic Textures in Pencil
by J. D. Hillberry
from North Light Books
for 6th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$24.99
Drawing the Head
by Walter Foster
from Dover Publications
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$12.95
Engineering the City
by Matthys Levy, Richard Panchyk
from Chicago Review Press
for 8th-12th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$14.95
Essential Jazz
by Henry Martin
1st edition from Schirmer
for 9th-Adult
in Clearance: Art & Music (Location: ZCLE-ART)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Faith in Color - Coloring Book
by Pearlyn Choco
from Paige Tate & Co.
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
Francis W. Edmonds
by H. Nichols B. Clark
from Smithsonian Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Clearance: Art & Music (Location: ZCLE-ART)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Getty-Dubay Italic Calligraphy
by Inga Dubay
from Getty-Dubay Productions
for 6th-Adult
in Calligraphy (Location: HAN-CALLIG)
$29.95
Gift of Music
by Jane Stuart Smith & Betty Carlson
3rd edition from Crossway Books
for 6th-12th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$19.19
Great Bridge
by David McCullough
from Simon and Schuster
for 11th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$20.00 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Great Christian Hymn Writers
by Jane Stuart Smith & Betty Carlson
from Crossway Books
for 7th-12th grade
in History of Hymns (Location: XCH-HYMN)
Harry Potter Magical Places & Characters Coloring Book
Clr from Scholastic Inc.
for 6th-Adult
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$15.99
Heaven in Stone and Glass
by Robert Barron
from Crossroad Publishing Co.
for 10th-Adult
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$14.95
History of Western Music
HarperCollins College Outline
by Hugh M. Miller & Dale Cockrell
5th edition from HarperCollins
for 7th-12th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Hollywood Worldviews
by Brian Godawa
from InterVarsity Press
for 11th-Adult
in Culture & Discernment (Location: XCU-DIS)
How to be an Explorer of the World
by Keri Smith
from Perigee Books
for 6th-12th grade
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way
by Stan Lee, John Buscema
Reprint from Touchstone
for 5th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$17.99
Inspire: Proverbs: Coloring & Creative Journaling through the Proverbs
Clr Csm from Christian Art Publishers
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$14.99
Inspire: Psalms: Coloring & Creative Journaling through the Psalms
Clr Csm from Christian Art Publishers
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$17.99
Little House Coloring Book
Clr Csm from HarperCollins
for 4th-Adult
in Little House Materials (Location: LIR-LHM)
$18.99
Making Comics
by Scott McCloud
from HarperCollins
for 11th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$25.99
Marvelous to Behold
by Jennifer Courtney
from Classical Conversations
for 7th-12th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$31.99
Music of the Great Composers
by Patrick Kavanaugh
from Zondervan
for 9th-Adult
in Music Appreciation (Location: ELE-MUSAP)
$21.99 $15.00 (1 in stock)
N.C. Wyeth's Wild West
by N. C. Wyeth
from Brandywine River Museum
for 7th-12th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
Nature Anatomy Notebook
by Julia Rothman
from Storey Publishing
for 6th-Adult
in Nature Study (Location: NAT-GEN)
$19.99
New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
by Betty Edwards
2nd edition from Penguin Putnam
for 7th-Adult
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
New International Dictionary of Music
by Philip D. Morehead
from Meridian Book
for 9th-Adult
in Music Education & Reference (Location: ELE-MUSREF)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
NPR Listener's Encyclopedia of Classical Music
by Ted Libbey
from Workman Publishing
for 6th-Adult
in Music Education & Reference (Location: ELE-MUSREF)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Official Dune Coloring Book
by Frank Herbert; illustrated by Tomislav Tomic
from ACE Publishing
for 4th-Adult
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$17.00
Op Art - Coloring Book
by Jean Larcher
First Edition from Dover Publications
for 4th-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$4.99
Optical Illusions - Coloring Book
by Koichi Sato
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$3.99
Outside Hollywood
by Isaac Botkin
from Vision Forum
for 10th-Adult
in Creating Culture (Location: XCU-CRE)
$10.00
Painting (The Flying Artist's Guide to Watercolor)
by Philip Berrill
from SpiceBox
for 9th-12th grade
in Painting Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTPAI)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Passion for the Impossible
by Miriam Huffman Rockness
from Discovery House Publishers
for 8th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Performing Literature - Student Textbook
by Diana Smith
from Bob Jones University Press
for 10th-Adult
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$46.11
Psalms in Color
from Christian Art Publishers
for 6th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$9.99
Seven Wonders of the World
by Ron Tagliapietra
from Bob Jones University Press
for 8th-Adult
in International Landmarks & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANINT)
$12.95 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Sketching as a Hobby
by Arthur L. Guptill
2018 Reprint from Dover Publications
for 9th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Son of Heaven: Imperial Arts of China
by Robert L. Thorpe
First Edition from Son of Heaven Press
for 6th-12th grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers
by Patrick Kavanaugh
2nd edition from Zondervan
for 9th-Adult
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Story of Art
by E. H. Gombrich
from Phaidon Press
for 10th-Adult
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$19.00 (2 in stock)
Student's Guide to Music History
by R. J. Stove
from Intercollegiate Studies Institute
for 9th-12th grade
$8.00
The Gate
by John Van Der Zee
from Touchstone
for 8th-12th grade
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
To Engineer is Human
by Henry Petroski
from Vintage Classics
for 9th-Adult
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
Treasury of Grand Opera
by Henry W. Simon, ed.
from Simon and Schuster
for 9th-Adult
in Opera & Choral Music (Location: ELE-MUSOP)
Understanding Comics
by Scott McCloud
from HarperCollins
for 10th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$24.99 $15.00 (1 in stock)
Visual Illusions - Coloring Book
by Spyros Horemis
from Dover Publications
for 4th-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$3.99
Watercolor Basics: Let's Get Started
by Jack Reid
from North Light Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Painting Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTPAI)
$19.99
Working with Acrylics
Leisure Arts #25
by Gordon Davies
from Search Press
for 9th-12th grade
in Painting Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTPAI)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
You Don't Cry Out Loud
by Lily Isaacs
from New Leaf Press
for 9th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.00