My kiddos love art! Like, carry around paper and some sort of writing utensil so they can doodle whenever given a chance, love art. So I was excited for the opportunity to take my family to an art class at Monart School of Art at The Art Park. My second oldest had taken an art camp there last summer and LOVED it, so a class my whole family could enjoy sounded super neat – all 7 of us!
When I originally signed up for the class, I hadn’t planned for my middle kid
do getting into an accident and breaking his leg. One surgery, a plate and 11 screws later, this family art night was the perfect medicine for a family that needed a bonding bash and a little boy who needed some cheering up.
We arrived at The Art Park a little early and had a picnic at the playground in the courtyard. Monart is housed in a building that is part of a pretty little campus of buildings that hold multiple forms of art and enrichment opportunities. Can I just say that if we had called it a night after playing and our picnic, the kids would have still considered it a win! It was such a beautiful night and so peaceful, being tucked away behind the quaint buildings. Luckily though, the night got even better!
When we arriv
ed at the class, Ms. Kate, one of the co-owners and our instructor for the evening, was so welcoming and accommodating. She rolled Sawyer’s wheelchair right up to the table and instead of him feeling like he was in the way, I could tell he felt quite cozy in his spot. After a sketching warm up, we got started on painting our canvases. The “piece” for the class was a butterfly and all the kids were excited about making their own unique creation.
While I was blow-drying some of the canvases, Ms. Kate read the kids a story about butterflies. After we left the class, my 3 year old said, “Mom, there was a story time in the art class! Did you know that was going to happen?” I thought this was the perfect activity to occupy the kids while the paint was drying, but also a great opportunity to expose the kids to the subject they were creating.
I had a complete mom moment halfway into our painting when my Sawyer had a small meltdown because his butterfly was different. Ms. Kate, with experience running an art school and experience with her own “big family, got Sawyer smiling and helped him see that art is interpretive and that “different”, like him, is perfect too. I was so thankful for her patience and kind words!
Monart School of Art offers a variety of family workshops, weekly child and adult classes, and art summer camps! The family workshop we attended was one hour long, which was perfect for the age range of our kiddos. {And paired with our picnic, it was quite the family date!} There aren’t many activities that all 7 of us can partake in and all be on the same playing field, but I am thankful Monart School of Art gave us a much needed fun Friday night. My daughter has already asked if we could go back when it is time for our mother daughter date.
Our final masterpiece was 6 b
utterflies and 1 fish (Our two year old’s interpretation of the butterfly resulted in a fish that she is so proud of).
For a complete listing of all Monart has to offer this summer, click here. There are morning, afternoon and evening workshops to accommodate all schedules. Monart School of Art is unique because the teachers have thousands of classroom hours and were all former teachers themselves. They use high quality materials and a patented method that teaches any age or level of student how to draw. For children, the teachers encourage following directions, task completion, follow-through and taking time with their work. These skills translate directly to regular ed. classroom skills too. For adults, especially those who have not drawn or painted before, the focus is to teach them how to draw confidently. Once they are comfortable, then they help them develop their personal style.
Thank you to Monart School of Art for sponsoring this post. WMB would not promote or work with a business we did not believe to be reputable or relevant to our readers.
