Art Class with the Stebbing's

I've been spending the last four months coordinating a three day art class for the local homeschool community. Mr. Stebbing and his wife, from How Great Thou Art, traveled to Maine to teach at the class.

This was the second one in a series of three they were teaching while in our great state. It was wonderful to have them here investing time in our children. If you ever have the chance to take one of their classes, I highly recommend it. While it is fast paced, they are so encouraging to everyone - parents and students alike, that I simply think everyone should take a class if possible.

I was actually able to participate in the class thanks to the Stebbings. I hadn't planned to, but was invited to sit and enjoy myself by the Stebbings. While I'm certainly no great artist, it was enjoyable to sit and see that I do have a bit more ability than just drawing stick figures. 

Mr. Stebbing seats the children according to age and height on the tables. My youngest son, age 9, was about five seats away and began to struggle with the paint mixing and initial assignment. He had a small meltdown and we left to have a pep talk. 

After we came back, Mr. Stebbing noticed and took Jack in hand. He moved him from the side where he was right up front next to where he sits. He deemed him the "Most Improved Student of the Day" by the end. Here was Jack's first effort:

I know it's hard to see, but he's holding up Jack's paint card. The squares are where they paint their mixed colors and then they paint the apple and tree. 

Here is Jack's card after sitting with Mr. Stebbing and having only about 10 minutes of one-on-one instruction. It was a vast improvement, his confidence soared, and by the end of ten days, he gave the class a "100" on a 1-10 scale. ::grin::

My middle son after completing his paint card.

What a change in attitude from 20 minutes prior!

It was definitely an intense three days for all of us. The class was hosted at where we used to attend church prior to our move. We ended up commuting each day which meant early risings and only one of us is a morning person. I mentioned that the class was fast paced so it also requires a lot of mental acuity. One must really focus and pay attention in order to glean all the knowledge as well as simply keep up!

By the third day, the skills were really showing.  As Mr. Stebbing said time and again, "Life is a discipline." He made the best come out in these children. It was truly amazing how even the youngest (age five) kept up and did well in this class. We had a few adults even join in for all the drawing and painting!

And a rare sighting on my blog....a photo of me. The Stebbing's were kind enough to recognize all the hard work that goes in to hosting one of these classes. It was appreciated.

Thank you once more Mr. & Mrs. Stebbing! I look forward to hosting you again next year!