January 14, 2009 8:17 AM
Art for families - a whole new world
A must for homeschool families - and anyone who wants to expand their children's world. Choose your own classical music as you browse. Besides browsing, you can make postcards - accompanied by music - to send to up to 20 friends. You can also download a classic desktop and order prints you like.
Because I grew up in a home without the arts, I was amazed as a young mother exploring the world of classical art and music with my children at how rich a world it offered us.
Plan an outing to your local art gallery soon. Some tips from Head Start on the Arts:
When you make plans to visit an art museum together, prepare your child. Explain why you need to wear comfortable, quiet shoes, to use quiet voices, to look and not touch.Don't plan on seeing the whole museum in one visit, and be sure to take a break for lunch or a snack. Let your child set the pace (unless you need to help her slow down). When she is interested in a particular picture or sculpture, read the label nearby for the for the title, the artist's name, the date, and the medium.
If there's a gift shop, let your child pick out a few postcards of the works she likes. These will be the ones she'll never forget, the first items in her own art collection.
And as with music, much of our Christian heritage is represented in classical art. There's something very gratifying about having your child instantly recognizing the subject matter of a painting straight out of the Bible.
If you can't get out to the galleries, here's a great way to expose your kid to art. Also two CD-ROMS I recommend:
With Open Eyes
The Louvre Museum (Museums of the World for Kids!, Vol. 1)
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Art Note:
FRAGONARD, Jean-Honoré
Monsieur de la Bretèche (Fanciful Figure)
1769
Oil on canvas, 80 x 65 cm
Musée du Louvre, Paris
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