Do you wish there was a simple way to include fine art in your lesson time? These Charlotte Mason Picture Study Aids put all the resources you need for picture study at your fingertips! High-quality art prints allow your student to take in each piece without distraction and make it truly part of the halls of their imagination.
Why include fine art in your homeschool?
I believe that art is important (so much so that I have a BA in art history!). Taking intentional time to study fine art hones a sense of beauty, develops observation skills, and presents ideas in beautiful ways.
One of the things that drew me most Charlotte Mason’s philosophies is her emphasis on exposing children to fine art. I loved the idea of simply showing students works of art from great artists of different time periods and allowing them to absorb the pieces on their own. There were no convoluted explanations or in-depth analyses of the art. The children were simply meant to enjoy and take in the art.
About this topic, Ms. Mason said:
His education should furnish him with whole galleries of mental pictures, pictures by great artists old and new;––…–– in fact, every child should leave school with at least a couple of hundred pictures by great masters hanging permanently in the halls of his imagination, to say nothing of great buildings, sculpture, beauty of form and colour in things he sees. Perhaps we might secure at least a hundred lovely landscapes too,––sunsets, cloudscapes, starlight nights. At any rate he should go forth well furnished because imagination has the property of magical expansion, the more it holds the more it will hold.
(Vol 6 pg 43 – emphasis mine)
Picture study truly is such a simple but powerful weekly practice that can be included in any homeschool routine. Spending only 10 to 15 minutes per week looking at, narrating, and discussing a work of art allows your child to develop a relationship with that piece.
When we first started homeschooling, during picture study, my students would inevitably have questions for me. Things like “Why is that there?” or “who is that?” or “what is that?” were very common.
In some cases, I knew the answer, or I could pull one of my old textbooks down from the shelf and look up the piece in question. In other cases, though, I didn’t have a ready answer.
Because of this, I started researching the pieces on my own before we looked at them for picture study. This really helped in our lesson time, and because I knew of other home educators who were running into the same problem, I wanted to share these resources!
Charlotte Mason Picture Study Aids
All Picture Study Aids are sorted by the century in which the artist lived.
Please note that for items marked “Sale,” the discount is only on specific variations of that item. Sale prices will be reflected when that specific variation is selected on the product page.
If you are interested in ordering printed Picture Study Aids and/or art prints for use in a group setting, you can use this form. If you are interested in PDF Picture Study Aids to use in a group setting, you can order licenses for this through the individual product pages below.
20th Century
19th Century
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John Constable Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Henry Ossawa Tanner Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Vincent van Gogh Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
John Singleton Copley Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Claude Monet Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Hokusai Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Emily Carr Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
Mary Cassatt Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
John William Waterhouse Picture Study Aid and Art Prints -
John Singer Sargent Picture Study Aid (Free Version)
18th Century
17th Century
16th Century
15th Century
14th Century
13th Century
What is included in the Picture Study Aids?
For each Picture Study Aid, you have either a printed or a PDF option.
Both include:
- An overview on Charlotte Mason picture study, including examples of what a picture study lesson looks like for different age groups.
- A brief summary of either the artist’s life or a story from their childhood, along with a picture of the artist and biographical information.
- In some, I have also included related excerpts from texts, such as Mary Inne’s Schools of Painting, or from Parents’ Review articles.
- Information on seven works of art from that particular artist, including a description of the painting and key discussion topics.
- A link for additional resources in the Living Art Book Archive.
With the printed version, you get:
- A high-quality, professionally printed book in full color. Some include a portrait of the artist at the end.
- Seven high-quality, professionally printed art prints. I have carefully selected the paper weight, thickness, and finish to offer prints that are not only perfect for picture study, but also beautiful and durable.
With the PDF version, you get:
- One download link for the PDF guide with all of the information listed above.
- One download link for printable versions of the pieces covered in the guide.
Recent Reviews
And, in case you’re new to Picture Study in general, I have a few posts that will interest you:
