When the weather starts warming up I head out of the classroom and into town or into parks to take my students for a sketching adventure. An hour of sketching in the outdoors is always magical.

I began to sketch every day moments from my life about ten years ago and pretty soon afterwards, I started teaching sketchbook workshops to adults and then to teens and kids. These are popular classes as people recognize that it is a way to be creative on a regular basis without the pressure of creating “Art.” And that it is a unique way of recording our day to day world. It improves our hand to eye skills, increases our observation skills and connects us to our world in a deep and joyful way.

Young artists and teens get so enthusiastic about sketching once I show them a few techniques. I'm thrilled to see their response to this experience. Developing a habit of visually documenting one's life can be an extremely rewarding, life long habit.

This summer I'm offering two summer camps for sketching. For more information on the sketching workshop for 9 - 12 year olds, click here. For more information on the sketching workshop for teens, click here. Art supplies are included in my summer camps, but if your kids and teens want their own supplies, I’ve put together a list of my favorite supplies for sketching. The supplies are listed here with links to Amazon for your convenience.

If you would like to see some of my sketchbooks, click here.

I believe that through art and play adults and children alike are able to understand their world and to establish connections to different areas in their life. Through art we are better able to understand and appreciate the world around us.