Crayon Drawing

Artistic expression is a very important part of the Oak Meadow curriculum. The primary media used throughout the course are crayon drawing and water color painting. Crayon drawing is used extensively by the child in the creation of his own books. Water color is used occasionally in the creation of books and also as a means to develop an understanding of the subjective value of colors, which naturally carries over into the crayon work.

Any activity can be approached in a considered, focused manner (consciously) or haphazardly (unconsciously). Crayon drawing is no exception. If an activity is approached unconsciously, it becomes an expression of unconscious patterns within the child, and tends to further the development of those patterns. However, if an activity is approached consciously, it can be the means of freeing a child from those patterns which bind him, and open opportunities for the expression of a deeper undeveloped essence within him. Such is the case with crayon drawing. In most educational situations, a child is not given any guidance in the early stages of artistic activity. Thus, as imitation is his primary means of learning in the early years, he looks for someone to imitate, and usually finds it in other children who are merely expressing their own unconscious patterns, or imitating illustrations from a book or magazine. The majority of such printed illustrations are drawn by adults and designed to appeal to the more mental adult tastes. Thus, children are essentially left with no artistic forms to imitate which are appropriate for their unique developmental needs.

The forms which children need as models for their early experiences in artistic expression can be easily created by any parent willing to try. Sophisticated talent is not necessary, and in many cases can be a detriment.

In reality, a child is a being with innate capabilities who is in the process of unfolding and manifesting those capabilities through this world of form. In the early stages of this unfoldment, a child is not able to focus upon forms as sharply as an adult, but sees the world more as an interplay of changing colors, shapes and inner feelings. Thus, the appropriate artistic forms for imitation by a child just learning to draw are not detailed figures, line drawings, or stick figures, but full shapes composed of rich natural colors without intricate details. As the child’s objective awareness of the world grows, his shapes will gradually become more detailed, reflecting this change in awareness. But he shouldn’t be pressured into expressing detail too early, for it has the effect of bringing forth the mental faculties too early, which results in a premature development of the critical nature, causing unhappiness in parent and child alike.

If instead the child is allowed to express himself through rich natural colors and full figures, his gentler qualities are able to flower and serve as a balancing agent for the mental activity which will develop naturally in later years. Many parents and children prefer to use beeswax crayons instead of the standard “crayola” crayons that are readily available. If you want to use beeswax crayons, they may be purchased from Oak Meadow. As a practical guide to understanding the means of creating such full, rich drawings, we offer the following suggestions:

1. Encourage your child NOT to outline. Drawing without outlining is only difficult if a child has spent many years outlining, but even then it can be changed. The reason for not outlining is because an outline creates a rigid line which is immovable. Thus, if the line isn’t “right” when it is first drawn, it cannot be adjusted to conform to the image the child is trying to create. Generally, not even an accomplished artist would try to create an image by outlining. An artist generally creates images by a sequence of lightly drawn lines gradually merging and made darker as the intended image becomes more accurate. If you wish to draw a tree, therefore, don’t start by doing this:

Instead, develop the tree as a movement of color rising from the ground, just as a tree would naturally grow:

First, the earth

Next, the roots ^_

Then, the trunk

Then, the branches

Finally, the leaves.

In this way a child is able to adjust the image as it develops, instead of being bound by the first line drawn.

2. Encourage your child to “feel his way along” as he draws. In our example of the tree, this would mean imagining that you are standing in front of the tree and feeling each part of the tree - the roots coming out of the ground, the trunk rising up, the limbs branching off, etc. As you feel your way in imagination you can actually be moving the crayon along on the paper, “feeling your way along” with the edge of the crayon.

3. Fill the entire page with color. Blue sky above should reach all the way to the green grass below. If the picture is of the inside of a house, the walls should be colored in, perhaps with something on the walls. Create a feeling of reality about the picture.

4. Practice yourself before you ask your child to do a particular drawing. If he wants to see something to copy, draw a picture for him, but encourage him at times to try drawing his own without having one from which to copy so that he doesn’t form the habit of always having to copy another drawing. However, remember that imitation is a child’s lifeblood in the early years; he must have something to imitate, for that is his nature. Therefore, create for him an imaginary picture through the story that you tell, and make the image strong and clear, so that he has something definite to imitate when he begins to draw. In this way, he learns how to give outer form to the images which arise within himself. Don’t expect a child to sit down and just create a picture without first having a vivid image planted in his imagination from an outside source. Some children are able to create without outside help of this nature, but most children need that assistance at first, and only later create such images from their own resources.

Using the stories from Language Arts, you can create vivid images within his imagination that he can reproduce on paper. Often, if a child has previously formed stick figures in his drawings, he may find it difficult to make the transition to a fuller expression. If this is the case with your child, don’t try to change his way of drawing by making a big issue of it. Instead, urge him gently into fuller and more expressive drawings by comments that invoke a compassionate response rather than an intellectual rebellion. There is no benefit in drawing a certain way if it is being done out of fear; the benefit comes as a child sees that his drawings look fuller and richer, and then begins to feel good about himself and his capabilities. An example of what we mean by “comments that invoke a compassionate response” would be as follows: If he has drawn a man as a stick figure, praise him for what he has done, but mention that the man looks like he’s a little weak, and maybe if we made his arms bigger he might feel stronger. Or, we could say that the man looks a little hungry, and maybe we should make his tummy bigger so that he feels better. Or perhaps he isn’t coloring in the whole page; mention that the poor tree doesn’t have any air to breathe, and we should give him some air so that he will feel better. However you choose to phrase your comments, always remember that the form is not what is important, but the process of getting to that form is what we are most concerned about. Support the child, help him feel good about himself and the form will gradually improve. We want to help children draw pictures that are rich, full and colorful because children feel better about themselves when they draw pictures like that, but if we arrive at such a form at the expense of the child, then the form we have achieved is meaningless. Continue to work with your child in a very supportive manner, and the quality of his art will gradually improve, becoming a more accurate expression of his inner feelings.