ARTistic Pursuits Volume 1 Review

ARTistic Pursuits Vol. 1

My kids love art!  They just do.  I love how easy ARTistic Pursuits Inc. makes art instruction for me with their K-3rd Grade Level, Volumes 1-8.  The kids and I have really been enjoying Art for Children, Building a Visual Vocabulary, K-3 Vol. 1.  This book has been a great introduction to watercolor crayons, color application, and paper cutting so far for my kids.  And even though it is geared for K-3rd grade, all of my kids (toddler - 9th) have been enjoying the methods and techniques as you will see in this post!  It's never too late to enjoy art and pick up techniques.

 This curriculum has book lessons as well as video lessons that are watched from DVDs provided.

DVD Instruction

The curriculum has a great materials page discussing all the materials needed throughout the curriculum.  

It also gives brand suggestions and recommendations.  You can buy the supplies as needed or purchase everything at once.  You can also purchase your art supplies directly from ARTistic Pursuits if you wish.  You can check out their K-3 Vol 1. Art Pack.  The book does a great job showing you the materials needed for each lesson.  Following each lesson is also prep instructions for the next lesson, so helpful!

Our art supplies for the first few lessons.

There are 18 lessons in this volume, 6 of which are video instruction.  The videos are short and engaging and really help show the students how to use the materials well.  They help reinforce and teach concepts.

Book Instruction for Lesson 1

Lesson 1 is a video lesson on how to make a picture using watercolor crayons properly.  You can choose some of your favorite items or items around your home for your picture.  I love that the videos are truly visual instructions.  My kids really enjoy them.  There is one page instruction for lesson 1 in the book but it is taught through the video.

Art Instruction DVD Lesson 1

F decided to make a banana

F using the Paintbrush to activate the watercolor crayons.

Finished work

D decided to make school supplies

I love that she is making a ruler.

A working on her drawing

A's dinosaur

B has been working through body systems in her Challenge program.

She drew a human heart.

The next few lessons are book lessons that do not have video instruction.  Each book lesson has several pages of instruction.  Lesson 2 was on composing people, animals, or objects in or outside your home.

A made a picture of our backyard shed.  This is before activating the watercolor crayons.


Finished work


Where A was sitting when she drew her work.


F made a domino


A closer view


C drew a picture of our Family Honor Plate.

Lesson 3 was a book lesson on adding imagination to your pictures.  It was so fun to see what the kids imagined!

B made music using food - look closely.

E working on her picture

E's imagination picture

D imagined herself at gymnastics on beam with her feet touching the ceiling as someone threw her flowers.

A's imagination picture with a cotton candy tree, jellybean bush, cake rocks, pie flowers, marshmallow mountains, a cookie sun and a Kit Kat river.

The second video lesson, lesson 4, is on how to identify and mix colors.

F and G loved naming the colors

The video showed how to mix colors to make new colors.

F working on shapes and mixing colors


F's finished page (age 5)

C working on mixing colors as well

E working on shapes and mixing colors


E's finished page

A's mixing colors with shapes page

 D's page

B didn't do shapes like everyone else but rather decided to mix colors into a picture Bible verse.

The third video lesson, lesson 7, is on construction paper cutting and how to make a collage using construction paper.  I love how creative the kids were in their creations.

Video lesson


E made a cake shop.


C made an ocean scene including some of the animals he has learned about in Marine Biology this year.


D wanted to do some of the planets.

B's paper cutting page

She took her inspiration from a book she is reading in Literature class.

A made a rose!

I hope I have given you an idea of how easy and fun this curriculum has been to use.  Remember, this curriculum consists of 8 volumes.  Be sure to click on the banner below to visit the Homeschool Review Crew blog to read more reviews of ARTistic Pursuits.

As you can see, we are really enjoying this curriculum.  We still have a few lessons to go before we finish.  I'm excited to see what the kids think when we get to use the oil pastels!