Anonymous wrote:Yet the friendship is important if the other girl is a good kid.

She’s in kindergarten. No worries yet about her smuggling her phone in to call boys or sharing her gummies.

I married into an East Asian family and art classes are very popular in my extended family’s friend circles. It’s considered semi-mandatory in the way that music lessons are, and is considered just part of raising a good child, like going to Sunday school or taking swim lessons.

People may call me a troll but I honestly enrolled DS7 in art classes because he had terrible penmanship and his school artwork was scribbles. Both improved after he took an outside drawing class. The teacher guided them and told them about blending, holding the pencils correctly, and doing best work. The classroom teacher and art teacher do not give any guidance or feedback about handwriting or art - it’s a free for all.

Anonymous wrote:I hope this is a troll.

I feel like is the same poster with the boy at outdoor camp today.
She has an older boy and younger girl and asks bizarre questions all the time.

I hope this is a troll.

Yet the friendship is important if the other girl is a good kid.

We had an art teacher that taught every from age 3 to adults. She was (and is) amazing. We would still go if not for the distance. Guided sat class for little kids in a perfect environment introduces them to concepts, media in a structured environment but lets them create within those boundaries. They then move on around 8/9 to much more open art concepts with more choices they can make. I would ask to see what kinds of classes the teacher has for older kids and how new work is encouraged etc. so it's not that everyone is doing "paint an apple" still life.

That’s insanely expensive. Look for cheaper ones if she enjoys art.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Good points. DD wants to join a friend to take art classes because they rarely see each other. They attend different school. How do you know if that art teacher is good or not? I am told once not to sign up art classes at early ages because that may affect their creativity and imagination.

Valid point. Can you find out if the teacher supports creativity and imagination?

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Good points. DD wants to join a friend to take art classes because they rarely see each other. They attend different school. How do you know if that art teacher is good or not? I am told once not to sign up art classes at early ages because that may affect their creativity and imagination.

Oh for the love of god.

Op here. Good points. DD wants to join a friend to take art classes because they rarely see each other. They attend different school. How do you know if that art teacher is good or not? I am told once not to sign up art classes at early ages because that may affect their creativity and imagination.

The purpose? To learn, to explore, to express, to trigger creativity, to just enjoy! It's not that deep.

Anonymous wrote:They like it. Not everything has to have a purpose beyond its an activity their kids enjoy.

This

They like it. Not everything has to have a purpose beyond its an activity their kids enjoy.

Many friends of DD have taken art classes for a year since at the begining of kindergarten. I debate if it is worth it or not ($35 to $40 a class, 4 class a month) and the purpose of taking art classes at this young age. She will be first grader in the fall.