Creating

Sometimes it is easy to forget how important crafting can be to a sense of homeschool well-being. A sheet of correctly solved math problems is very satisfying, and definitely should be, but tapping into our creativity encourages mental stretching that gives us the strength to think on our toes, finding new and unique solutions to problems. Plus the process of imagining, pursuing, and then completing an entirely unique project, with final product in hand, gives a sense of fulfullment that, honestly, knocks internal self-patting right out of the park.

Clay, paper, paint, markers, pencils...you name it. There are lots of outlets for creative expression. This week Calvin made a pot, created a picture by pressing colored non-drying clay onto a sketch of his own, designed and built with Legos, and started a new scrapbook. This in addition to writing stories, noodling on the piano, and singing songs of life at the top of his lungs from the shower. And, of course, drawing.

We've always done a lot of drawing. Calvin illustrates most of his journal entries, and he loves to draw maps, as well, creating the worlds, real and imagined, that he explores in the books that he reads. I love his youthful symbolic drawings—the ones where birds have wings and four feet, suns have clearly visible rays, and people have oddly circular torsos—but he's entering the stage of more realistic images, so we've embarked on a journey of self-lead lessons with Drawing With Children, by Mona Brooks. This week we tried self portraits, taking pencils and clipboards and sketching pencils into the bathroom to use the mirror. Calvin did a first sketch, then we spent some time talking about the difference between his first sketch and the image he was seeing in the mirror and he made a second sketch. Then, just for fun, he made the likeness out of construction paper, too.

Clay pot making, inspired by the ancient pottery we saw behind the scenes at the museum

Pressed clay landscape

self portrait sketching