The Art Lesson

The Art Lesson

By: Tomie dePaola

Genre: Autobiography

Grade: Pre-K-1

Do you ever dream about what you are going to be when you grow up? Do you know what you are going to be when you grow up? Do you have any special talents? In this story called The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaola, you learn about Tomie as a young boy who has a passion for art and follows his dreams of becoming an artist.

In Tomie dePaola’s autobiography titled The Art Lesson, we meet Tomie as a young boy who has a passion for art. He knew he wanted to be an artist when he grew up and he drew many pictures that his family members displayed around their houses and their places of work. He loved to draw and always drew as many pictures as he could, whenever he could. Tomie had two older cousins who were attending art school and they told him “not to copy and to practice, practice, practice.” So Tomie practiced whenever he had the chance, even when he was supposed to be sleeping! Tommy was looking forward to first grade because his brother told him that he would have a real art lessons with a real art teacher. For his birthday, his parents bought him a sixty-four pack of Crayola crayons. He could hardly wait to use them in his art class, but when he arrived at school his teacher Miss Landers told him he could only use the school crayons that only had eight colors and that they could only have one sheet of paper per class! Tomie was disappointed to hear this, but when the day of the art lesson arrived Tomie brought his pack of sixty-four crayons to school anyways. When he met the art teacher Mrs. Bowers, she told them to use their school crayons and one sheet of paper and copy what she was drawing on the board. Tomie was shocked; he knew that real artists didn’t copy drawings so he refused to copy what was on the board. When Miss Landers asked Tomie why he wasn’t drawing, Tomie explained to Mrs. Bowers that he was going to be a real artist when he grew up and that real artist didn’t copy. He also explained that he wanted to use the new crayons that he received as a present on his birthday. Mrs. Bowers decided that if Tomie drew what the class was supposed to draw and that if he had time left over he could get another piece of paper and draw with his new crayons. Tomie was so excited he completed the assignment and was able to make another drawing on a new piece of paper using his own crayons. In the end, we find out that Tomie still draws to this day and is actually the author of this book!

I enjoyed this book because it encourages children to follow their dreams. It also shows children that if you work hard enough, you can become whatever you wanted to be. I think that this book proves that no dream is too big and that if you have a talent and a passion pursue it. I also like this book because of the illustrations. They are colorful and fun and also follow the storyline very well. When you read the story the images that form in your head are exactly as Tomie dePaola illustrated them. The storyline was simple and easy to follow. It would be appropriate for younger students of preschool age all the way through first grade. I also enjoy this book because it gives you an idea of what Tomie dePaola was like when he was younger. Since he is a famous and frequently used children’s author, I think that it would be great for students to learn about his life and how he ended up becoming and illustrator and author. Getting students interested in learning about authors that they enjoy at a young age important and will hopefully keep them interested in learning about authors in the future. Knowing about an author can help students understand their stories more and can allow them to make connections between the books and the author’s life.

The Art Lesson would be suitable for students in preschool through first grade. Teachers could use this book to introduce Tomie dePaola as an author, giving the students an idea about Tomie dePaola’s life. Teachers could also use this book to encourage students to follow their dreams and to always believe in themselves and their abilities. The Art Lesson can also be used to meet the Massachusetts ELA framework in craft and structure (4) and (6).