Drawing for Older Children & Teens: A Creative Method for Adult Beginners, Too

Drawing for Older Children and Teens by Mona Brookes extends the acclaimed Monart Method to meet the specific needs and interests of older students. While Drawing with Children focuses on younger learners, this companion volume addresses the unique challenges that tweens, teens, and adult beginners face when learning to draw, including heightened self-criticism and a desire for more realistic results.

The book recognizes that older beginners often feel frustrated because their artistic skills have not kept pace with their critical eye. Brookes addresses this gap directly with exercises designed to quickly bring drawing ability up to a satisfying level. The progressive lessons move efficiently through foundational skills while maintaining the encouraging, non-threatening approach that made the Monart Method famous.

Lessons cover essential drawing concepts including proportion, perspective, shading, texture, and composition. Students progress from simple contour drawings to complex still lifes, landscapes, and figure drawing. Each lesson includes multiple difficulty levels so students can work at their own pace and challenge themselves appropriately.

For homeschooling families with older children, this book fills a critical gap in art education. Many art curricula target either young children or college-level students, leaving middle and high school learners underserved. Brookes provides age-appropriate instruction that respects the intelligence and artistic ambitions of older students while building skills systematically.

The book includes practical advice on materials, setting up a drawing workspace, and integrating drawing practice into a busy schedule. Reproducible exercises and project ideas make it easy to create a structured art curriculum or use the book for independent study. Students who complete the course will have developed strong observational drawing skills and the confidence to continue developing their artistic abilities independently.