Art Resources

Art is one of those things kids should just be encouraged to do. You can teach them theory till you're blue in the face, but if you don't let them hold a colored pencil, wield a brush, or imitate Van Gogh (except the ear-removing part), it'll fall on uncomprehending ears. Just as science is kind of dead without experimentation and observation, so art isn't a mere textbook pursuit to be read about and never practiced.

Edith Schaeffer wrote a superb little book titled The Hidden Art of Homemaking about the need for every Christian to imitate the Creator God by expressing their own creativity. She stresses that not everyone needs to be famous or make money from what they produce (not most, in fact), but that being creative and making art is an important element of our humanity.

We couldn't agree more. Kids need to understand that creative expression is a good thing when used to glorify God and encourage those around them, and that they shouldn't be embarrassed to explore and hone their talents. To that end, we're doing our best to offer plenty of tools and resources to help them do just that.

There's the tools themselves of course: markers, pencils, brushes, paints, etc., even an artist's smock for messy projects. Then there's the coloring books (a great place to start!), drawing and painting instruction guides, craft books, richly illustrated art history texts and artist biographies, pictorial explorations of great architecture, etc.

Some texts are aimed specifically at parents and teachers. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is a guide to moving beyond childish scrawls to advanced drawing techniques. Drawing With Children helps parents guide kids through the five elements of drawing, offering tips, advice, and exercises to help developing artists improve without getting frustrated.

The products from How Great Thou Art are instructional while helping kids relate art to a Christian worldview. This is essential: art is not created for its own sake, but for the glory of God and for the delight and instruction of others. We don't draw or paint or design just to entertain people, and if we do we need to reconsider what exactly it is we're up to. Teaching kids to keep things in perspective from the beginning is crucial.

Just letting your kiddos get their fingers smudged with markers and crayon shavings in their hair is probably the first step. Guidance is important in any pursuit, but so is the ability to try things, to fail, and to learn and do better next time. Supplies will help with the practice part; books, guides, and manuals will help with the getting better part.

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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72 Items found Print
Active Filters: 7th grade (Ages 12-13), Trade Paperback
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
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
Architecture
Perspectives on History Series
by Pat Perrin
from History Compass
for 6th-9th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$7.95
Art of Construction
by Mario Salvadori
from Chicago Review Press
for 5th-8th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$16.95 $10.00 (2 in stock)
Art of Drawing People
from Walter Foster
for 7th-Adult
in Advanced Drawing Instruction (Location: ELE-ARTDRAD)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Art Smart: Spot the Details and Find Out the Facts
Act from Dover Publications
for 1st-7th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Artist of the Reformation
by Joyce McPherson
from Greenleaf Press
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.95
Bill Peet
by Bill Peet
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 4th-8th grade
1990 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Cartooning the Head & Figures
by Jack Hamm
for 3rd-8th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Castle
by David Macaulay
from Graphia
Architecture for 4th-8th grade
1978 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$16.99
Cathedral
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
Architecture for 4th-8th grade
1974 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$12.99
Charlotte in Giverny
by Joan MacPhail Knight
Reprint from Chronicle Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS)
City
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$14.99 $7.50 (2 in stock)
DK Annotated Guide: Architecture
DK Annotated Guides
by Neil Stevenson
from DK Publishing
Architecture for 4th-10th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Draw & Write Through History Book 6
by Carylee Gressman
from C.P.R. Publishing
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw & Write Through History (Location: ELE-ARTDWTH)
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Draw 50 Athletes
by Lee Ames
Act from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Baby Animals
by Lee J. Ames, Murray Zak
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Birds
by Lee Ames & Tony D'Adamo
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Boats, Ships, Trucks, and Trains
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Buildings and Other Structures
by Lee J. Ames
from Doubleday & Company
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Draw 50 Buildings and Other Structures
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Draw 50 Cars, Trucks, and Motorcycles
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Draw 50 Cats
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Creepy Crawlies
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
Draw 50 Dinosaurs
by Lee J. Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Dogs
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Flowers, Trees, and Other Plants
by Lee Ames
from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Horses
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Sharks, Whales, and Other Sea Creatures
by Lee Ames
from Broadway Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw 50 Vehicles
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
Draw Cars
by Doug Dubosque
from Peel Productions
for 3rd-8th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$4.50 (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
Draw the Draw 50 Way
by Lee Ames
Reprint from Watson-Guptill Publications
for 3rd-8th grade
in Draw 50 (Location: ELE-ARTD50)
$9.99
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 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
Drawing with Children
by Mona Brookes
2nd edition from Penguin Putnam
for 2nd-8th grade
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$19.95 $11.00 (3 in stock)
Drawing with Children
by Mona Brookes
from Penguin Putnam
for 2nd-8th grade
in Clearance: Art & Music (Location: ZCLE-ART)
$3.50 (2 in stock)
Empire State Building
by Elizabeth Mann
from Mikaya Press
for 3rd-8th grade
2004 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
Figure It Out!
by Chris Hart
from Chris Hart Books
for 4th-10th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$21.99
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)
From Ordinary To Extraordinary
by Ken Vieth
from Davis
for 5th-10th grade
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$17.50
Getty-Dubay Italic Calligraphy
by Inga Dubay
from Getty-Dubay Productions
for 6th-Adult
in Calligraphy (Location: HAN-CALLIG)
$29.95
Global Art
by MaryAnn F. Kohl & Jean Potter
from Gryphon House
for 3rd-8th grade
in Art & Drawing Reference (Location: ELE-ARTREF)
$10.00 $4.00 (4 in stock)
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
How to Draw Horses
from Scholastic Press
for 3rd-7th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
How to Draw Pets
by Arnold Snyder, Carrie A. Snyder
from Troll Associates
for 5th-8th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
I, Juan de Pareja
by Elizabeth Borton de Treviño
from Square Fish Publishing
Realistic Fiction/Slavery for 5th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99 $4.50 (3 in stock)
I, Juan de Pareja
by Elizabeth Borton de Treviño
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Realistic Fiction/Slavery for 5th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Journey into Africa - How to Draw and Color
by Ann Jansen
from GeoDeo Educational Resources
for 2nd-8th grade
in Africa (Location: HISMC-AFR)
$8.50 (1 in stock)
Leonardo da Vinci for Kids
by Janis Herbert
from Chicago Review Press
Biography/Activity Book for 3rd-8th grade
in Renaissance & Reformation (Location: HISW-REN)
$17.95
Marvelous to Behold
by Jennifer Courtney
from Classical Conversations
for 7th-12th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$31.99
Mill
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$12.99
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)
Pencil Drawing
by Eugene Metcalf, Mia Tavonatti, Michael Butkus, William Powell
from Walter Foster
for 4th-10th grade
in Drawing for Beginners (Location: ELE-ARTDRAW)
$7.95
Pyramid
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
Ancient Egyptian Architecture for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$12.99 $7.00 (4 in stock)
Pyramid
by David Macaulay
from Trumpet Club
Ancient Egyptian Architecture for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$4.00 (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)
Spot the Differences Book 3
by Susan L. Rattiner, ed.
from Dover Publications
for 3rd-7th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$10.99
Spot the Differences Book 4
by Alan Weller
from Dover Publications
for 3rd-7th grade
in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
$10.99
Underground
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-8th grade
in Architecture and Sculpture (Location: ELE-ARC)
$12.99
Usborne Book of Famous Artists
from Usborne
for 2nd-7th grade
in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS)
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