Stack Overflow: The Top Five Books to Do Art With Your Kids — Plus Resources!

Collecting books about art-making is my guilty pleasure.

If I had to highlight the very best books currently out there for young artists, parents, and art teachers, I would definitely pick these five first.

I volunteer every week at a facility that serves lunch to 80 kids, ages ranging from 4 to 18, and I do one lesson a month with each age group. Since I’ve started volunteering in 2017, I was starved for good resources, so each one of these books comes recommended with hands on experience.

First though, we have to talk art: what do you consider “art making”? Do you keep supplies at home for your kids to experiment with? Are you willing to “allow” for some mess in the house? Will you be willing to participate on activities, or you’d rather let them explore and experiment at their own pace? Are you willing to spend in some art material such as paintbrushes and watercolor paper?

For me, art making is all about the experience: testing out different materials, trying new ideas and subjects, learning about famous artists and their paintings or sculptures… However, I do know that kids get easily frustrated with some basic things like drawing big, or will feel dismayed if something goes awry in their design.