Teaching Art In the Primary Grades, Sailing through 1 2 3 Grades By Jerry E. Twitchell is a book of lesson plans that are designed to help guide students through three years of art class. As a homeschooling mom and former public school teacher I am always excited to see curriculum that might be a good fit for our family. Twichell has done a great job of laying out lessons that would be easy to teach and lead student through more than just coloring and crafts. Each lesson has a clear objectives with all needed supplies listed. Twitchell Teaches art techniques as well as care of materials. I like that the lesson included portfolio building and naturally includes proof of progression of learning over time. The lessons appear to be fun and varied. They would be good to use with either a single student, siblings or a co op class.

I received a complimentary copy for this book from Celebrate Lit, this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own.

As a children's librarian who received an undergraduate degree in studio art, I naturally gravitate toward planning children's arts and crafts programs at the library. I often receive many comments from parents and caregivers expressing their thanks for this because they claim they themselves aren't creative, aren't confident in their ability to lead or provide these types of experiences for children. Teaching Art in the Primary Grades: Sailing Through 1-2-3 Grades was written with these types of instructors in mind.

Each lesson includes a viewpoint (an introduction for the teacher with the focus of the lesson), time frame (one to five 40 minute periods, depending on the project), techniques and general steps, a materials list, and assessment if applicable. The lessons cover a wide range of mediums and techniques, exposing younger elementary school students to drawing, painting, weaving, collage, sculpting, mixed media, clay, printmaking, etc. The materials used are generally inexpensive, easily accessible or simple to substitute.

Since this book is focused on early elementary school (grades 1 to 3), I feel that the lessons are suitable and accessible for teachers who may not be entirely confident in their artistic abilities. In fact, since many of the lessons introduce basic art concepts and techniques (e.g. shading, pinch forming method with clay, basic weaving, etc.) I would suggest any un-confident teacher try some of the art projects for themselves to become familiar with the process before instructing others. As they are introduced, art tools and terminology are briefly defined (e.g. a brayer for printmaking, the parts of a paintbrush, warp and weft in weaving, etc.) and I appreciated that the author included instructions for things such as cleaning and caring for brushes, because an artist is never too young to learn how to properly care for their tools. Though no step-by-step photos are included, there are simple line drawings and other illustrations to help adequately visualize concepts and instructions.

Unfortunately, there are some elements that leave me unable to fully recommend this book. The most glaring is in Unit I, Lesson 2 for second grade entitled "A Clay Me," the author refers to Unit I, Lesson 7: "My Clay Friend" from Grade 1 multiple times which includes a Play Dough Recipe and other resources a second grade instructor could use to help introduce the medium to students who may not have experienced crafting sculptures with clay. However, I could not find the lesson "My Clay Friend" anywhere in my copy of this book or the table of contents listed in the e-book version I previewed online. My best guess is that the lesson was mistakenly left out (since the last lesson in first grade's Unit I is Lesson 6) or the similarly titled Lesson 8, "My Puppet Friend," from Unit II was meant to replace this missing lesson but they forgot to remove references to "My Clay Friend." However, I do think you would be able to get by and utilize the second grade lesson without this missing lesson with the instructions listed (or supplementing it with another book or online resource on clay sculpting).

I also wish that the author included more current material in his third grade bibliography on Native American art and reading list on off-loom weaving, both listed in Appendix A. While there's nothing wrong with referring to titles from the 1960s-1970s, I question how easily accessible these books would be, even at a public library or through online used books stores. Including some more recently publishing alternatives (even published within the last 20 years) would have been more ideal.

I believe most of my issues with this book is due to its nature as an indie/self published book. However, though Redemption Press specializes in Christian titles and authors, it's important to note that this title is strictly on teaching art and there are no references to God or Christianity that I caught, so it could easily be utilized in a secular setting. I plan to use my copy for ideas to introduce more art concepts and techniques in my children's arts and crafts program at a public library. Overall, if you are able to borrow or find this book on sale, definitely take a look and see if it will work for your needs.

[Disclosure:I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes through participation of this blog tour.]

I am thrilled with this new book from Jerry E. Twitchell. I possess no art talent of my own but my five year old granddaughter enjoys drawing and I am hoping that this will be a way for me to spend quality time with her and to create special memories. The author is a retired art and history instructor and in this book he has given home-school parents and teachers a structured plan to teach students in grades 1-3. There are units for each grade level and lesson plans that include the goals, the instructions, and the materials needed. These lessons are extremely helpful and I believe that even a novice such as I will be able to complete some of them with my granddaugher. This is a big book filled with information and illustrations and I am impressed that there are over 125 pages devoted to the first grade alone! Some of these first projects include coloring, painting, making valentines and puppets, paper tearing, and incorporating shapes into an art project.

Twitchell has created a great resource for anyone who wants to encourage art and creativity and I recommend Teaching Art in the Primary Grades to both homeschool parents and anyone else who has young children in their lives.

I received a complimentary copy from the author and Celebrate Lit. These are my own opinions.

Teaching Art in the Primary Grades, by Jerry E. Twitchell, is an art textbook designed to be used by home school parents or teachers of students in grades 1-3. At each grade level, themed units feature interactive lessons that offer at least 90 minutes of art-related activities per week for an average of 36 weeks. Each lesson includes goals, steps, necessary materials, and the amount of time that is needed for teaching and completing the lesson.

I enjoy using this textbook with my children, and my kids like it too! As a mom, I appreciate the fact that many of the lessons only require basic art supplies that I already have on hand. As a teacher, I value the fact that the lessons build on the knowledge that has been learned and the skills that have been acquired in previous lessons. I also appreciate that the lessons are designed to compliment kids' developing motor skills, attention span, and interests. When completing lessons from this book, my kids are engaged and their imaginations are stimulated.

I did find that a few of the lessons lacked sufficient instructions on how to guide the students through the given activity. I have previous art experience, so I was able to figure out how to proceed. I do think that those with little to no art experience may struggle a bit in teaching some of the more open-ended lessons. However, I also found that many of the lessons are easily adaptable to multiple ages and skill levels which is valuable in many different learning environments.

Overall, I recommend this book for parents and teachers who are looking for thoughtfully designed elementary art lessons that are sequentially structured, fun, and easy to use with individual students or large groups. It is a worthwhile addition to any public, private, or home school classroom.

*I was given a copy of this book from the publisher through Celebrate Lit. The review I have written is voluntary and contains opinions that are entirely my own.

As a homeschooling mother, I am always on the lookout for new materials. Plus, with a daughter who loves art, I was excited to have the opportunity to review this book. I do not consider myself gifted in the field of art, and being military means we often move. So we have not had art instruction available to our family typically. So the idea of having a book that provides step-by-step instructions and does not require me to an art expert was a good thing.

I appreciate how each lesson contains all the instructions and directions for what needs to be done that day. This book covers grades 1-3 and does an excellent job of covering a variety of topics.

I found the lessons to be well-crafted and interesting. I feel it is an excellent book for starting art instruction in the elementary grades. So check it out for yourself.

I received a copy of this book for my fair and honest reivew.