Sunday Post: Colorful

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“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way…things I had no words for.” – Georgia O’Keeffe

 

Why am I so passionate about encouraging parents and teachers to provide young children with arts and crafts activities?

Even Georgia O’Keeffe stated that colors and shapes enabled her to express what she couldn’t express in words.  Art activities and art education are crucial for kids…and unfortunately, those are the first subjects to be eliminated when school budgets are cut.  Working in different mediums such as paint, clay, crayons and colored pencils allows young children to express their feelings and their thoughts in ways they may not be able to verbally.   Give a child a box of crayons or a palette of watercolor paints and a pad of paper and watch the magic happen!  Participate with that child and draw a picture alongside him and open the door to a wonderful opportunity for a discussion about…anything and everything!

Connections are formed in so many ways and I’ve made two wonderful new connections in the last week.

The first connection is with another Word Press blogger.  Whenever I receive a comment on one of my posts from someone new, I always go to their blog to find out who they are and what they are all about.

That’s how I met Jake from Time after Time.

I was enthralled by the dragon button graphic!

And I promised that I would try to link up with his Sunday posts.  This week the theme is Colorful!

Here’s how the weekly photo Competition works:

1. Each week, Jake provides a theme for creative inspiration.  Show the world…based on your interpretation…what you have in mind for the theme, and post them on your blog anytime before the following Sunday when the next photo theme will be announced.

2. Subscribe to jakesprinter so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements. Sign up via the email subscription link in the sidebar or RSS.

GET THE BADGE FOR YOUR IMAGE WIDGET….

Make sure to have the image link to http://jakesprinters.wordpress.com/ so that others can learn about the challenge, too.

 

The second connection I made was with Jim from ArtClick.tv.  This website offers art instruction videos for all age levels.  They even have special art instruction videos for children…what a wonderful tool for schools, homeschooling families or even individual parents.  I’m really excited about this and I’ve been asked to contribute to their newsletter with a “Kids and Art” column!  I’ll share more about this “art connection” in future posts.  If you are interested in checking out the fantastic selection of art instruction videos they have, you can click on the link above or on the button on my sidebar.

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19 thoughts on “Sunday Post: Colorful”

  2. Vivian, I really enjoyed the focus of your post. I agree that art can help children express their feelings and communicate and express themselves in a way they may not have words for. Love the photo of your kids having fun! You are very creative with your activities. Great post.

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    • Thanks for stopping by, Colline…I appreciate your comments and agree that art activities relieve stress…not only for kids, but for adults as well. 😉
      I visited your post…so filled with info on coral reefs…thank you for sharing…the photos were great as well!

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  5. Pingback: Sunday Post: Colorful | Living Life in Glorious Colour

  6. I too am an art enthusiast. children need to explore with colour, with different art forms, they need to develop thier creative brain. I hear too many adults saying they can’t draw, they are not creative. That is so wrong. We are all creative. That is a gift we have been given, it is part of being human. It is when we are criticized as children that we shy away from trying even as an adult. In art, there is NO wrong way.

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    • Hi Maggie,
      Thank you so much for your insightful and validating comments. When we hear adults say…I can’t sing…or…I can’t draw…or…I can’t dance…I’m sure the roots of that are in their childhoods…people who told them that what they did wasn’t good and so they absorbed those negative comments and believed them. That’s why I am so passionate about uplifting kids and empowering parents with the knowledge that their positive affirming attitude plays a major role in the formation (for better or for worse) of their children’s self-image!

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  8. I tell my kids all the time that, when I was their age, my favorite toy was my box of crayons. Unfortunately, I think many kids’ exposure to art is limited to what they experience at school and, like you said, when budgets are under scrutiny, art is the first thing to go. Great post, Vivian! Thanks for pointing us to another wonderful resource.

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    • Thank you, Barb! My round cookie tin of crayons of different sizes and shapes and vintage went with me everywhere…and it wasn’t until I got to upper elementary grades that I found out I “couldn’t draw”. 🙂 I hope people will check out the artclick.tv site…I think it could be a great resource for parents and teachers.

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    • Yes, Julie…the question is: how can we keep “the enthusiasm for learning” and “love of expressing oneself through art” alive? It is present in most very young children…and then something happens and all-to-often it diminishes and disappears.
      I loved all types of arts and crafts activities…but “learned” when I went to school that I couldn’t draw. 😦

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  10. Pingback: Sunday Post : Colorful | Cassie's World

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