Airplanes

Children's Literature - Heather Christensen

Children will learn how to draw airplanes using basic shapes in this edition in the "First Drawings" series. Starting with a picture of a bi-wing airplane, Hosley has young artists cut a strip of paper the size of the plane's engine. Readers will then measure other parts of the airplane with this strip, and mark the paper accordingly. To change the size of the airplane, the student only needs to change the size of the strip, while keeping the proportions the same. The next step is to break the picture down into basic shapes and, following the proportions set on the paper to lightly sketch the shapes. Finally, artists can add details to the shapes to create a complete picture of an airplane. The advantage to this method of drawing is that the readers are not limited to specific drawings in one book, but can use the method to draw all kinds of airplanes or other objects using a picture or photograph as a guide. It will also help new artists grasp the sometimes-difficult concept of proportion. Young children may have trouble breaking down a picture into basic shapes, but the book does a good job of not overwhelming the reader with too much information on one page. Large type and plenty of white space make this an excellent drawing book for beginning readers. Reviewer: Heather Christensen