Family and Homeschool Activities: Vincent van Gogh

These family and homeschool activities are designed to complement the Vincent van Gogh topic on BrainPOP Jr.

Visit to the Museum

If possible, visit an art museum with your child. Have him or her bring a notebook and pencils to take notes and sketch when inspiration hits. Look at different paintings together and talk about each one. Encourage your child to pay attention to color, shapes, lines, and brushstrokes. What feeling or idea does each painting convey? If possible, find a few paintings done by the same artist and compare and contrast. How are they alike or different?

Still Life

Have your child create a still life painting. You may want to look at a few examples of still lifes and discuss each. Guide your child to notice that the objects used can give insight into the artist’s thoughts and feelings. For example, a watch might symbolize time or wealth, and a funny hat might symbolize humor. Help your child create an arrangement of objects and then create a still life painting. You may want to encourage your child to use Van Gogh’s technique of experimenting with different sketches before painting.