Art Class: All About Birds for Young Artists (Ages 8-11)

In this weekly ongoing class we'll have lots of fun chatting about our bird watching experiences while we create artwork about birds.   Since we cover a new bird in each project that usually takes us 2 classes to complete, your child could jump in at any time between birds.  Just message me to see which class dates we are beginning a new project.  

We'll use a realistic style for most of our lessons, but occasionally, we'll have some fun using our imagination (based on realistic bird parts) to create a drawing or painting of a bird that does not really exist.  Most of our lessons will focus on a specific type of bird, however, in some of our lessons we also study how to draw birdhouses & feeders, bird baths, tree limbs, nests & eggs, and other things in their natural habitat.   We'll also work on a variety of natural body positions for birds throughout our lessons. 

We cover a wide variety of birds in this class.  Here's a peek at some of our topics from the past plus what's coming up next! 
2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR: Backyard Song Birds & some Birds of Prey 
SUMMER 2022:  Waterfowl 
FALL 2022:   Birds of the Rainforest 
WINTER 2023:  Birds of the North & South Pole (Arctic & Antarctica)
SPRING 2023:  Backyard Birds 
SUMMER 2023: Seabirds & Shorebirds/Waders 
FALL 2023:  Birds of the Rainforest (Cassowary, Galah Rose-Breasted Cockatoo, Green-Headed Tanager, etc.)

CURRENTLY IN SPRING 2025:  Birds of North America 
March 5 & 12: Dark-Eyed Junco
March 19 & 26: Bluebird
April: Rose-Breasted Grosbeak and Eastern Towhee
May 2025:  We'll continue with North American Birds


(Classes will be cancelled from this schedule if we have had no learners sign up at least 24 hours in advance of our class.  The first 4 projects will remain in this order of topics even though the dates will be pushed forward depending on student sign up dates.)

We will use drawing materials, watercolor paints, oil pastels, and acrylic paints in these lessons.    Look for a note on our classroom page a couple of days in advance of each lesson for which supplies we need for the upcoming class.  Then have the supplies gathered & ready before your child signs into our class each week. 

I'm very excited that Outschool allows us to expand a project across more than one class meeting!  So our painting lessons will be divided into 2 parts with our drawing steps in the first part one week and our painting steps in the 2nd part the following week.  This will help our class end on schedule more often instead of needing so much extra time after class to finish each week.  It will also help us feel comfortable spending time in the details of the drawing, too, and allow me to lead lessons on some of the birds that I've had to skip in the past because they would need more time than one class session.  

No prior drawing or painting experience needed because I'll lead each child step-by-step through each project and still include options along the way, too.  Even though students enjoy talking about their birding experiences, it is not necessary to have seen any specific birds to be successful with these art lessons.  

Students will show us their drawings or paintings several times during our lessons and at the end of our classes so we can celebrate and encourage each other's progress and success.  This also helps me watch for opportunities to give more guidance or tips throughout the lesson as needed.  

Please also note that occasionally our class may need a few extra minutes to finish our lesson and will be based more on the natural pace & needs of the students in our class.