The summer months provide a special time for kids to explore their creativity and discover new skills. By planning activities and events in July and August, you can inspire a wealth of learning in your young artist throughout the school break.
Artists for Kids offers both Summer Day Camps for kids in Kindergarten through Grade 3, and weeklong immersive Summer Visual Arts camps in Brackendale B.C. for kids aged 8-12, and 13-18.
“Hands-on art making is a great inspiration for kids,” says Yolande Martinello, Director of Artists for Kids. “Young people can spend a lot of time on their phones or other devices. Providing them with tangible ways to create, whether it’s drawing, painting, collage or printmaking, gives them an essential outlet for their creativity.”
There are lots of ways to keep your child engaged with art-making this summer. Yolande and her team at AFK have a few suggestions:
· Create a sketchbook for your child: Develop creative prompts to focus thinking, such as colour exploration. “When we give children prompts,” Yolande says, “it allows them to embrace freedom of expression within a framework.”
· Go for a walk in nature: Ask your child to choose items from the walk, such as grass, sticks, or leaves, and use these as inspiration for a collage.
· Create an art challenge: Have your child join you in drawing or creating something every day this summer. Choose a start and end date and commit to spending around 15 minutes each day just drawing, painting, creating a collage, or writing. This daily diary of the summer will inspire you both to see the world with fresh eyes. It may also spark a lifelong love of creative self-expression as you create a memory book of your summer.
For more ideas for keeping your kids creatively entertained this summer, visit www.sketchbookproject.com.
For more information on Artists for Kids and their summer activities, call 604.903.3798, check out the website, email, or visit the gallery at 2121 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver. The Gordon Smith Gallery can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.
