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 What Are Pastels?

What Are Pastels?
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 4 to 6
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   7.19

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    realistic, multicolored, darken, pastel, versatile, unique, artwork, easily, especially, medium, artists, primitive, bison, lines, fade, history
     content words:    South France, South Africa, Rosalba Carreira, Edgar Degas

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What Are Pastels?
By Colleen Messina 		  
1     Pastels are colored, powdery sticks that can make many kinds of drawings. Many artists like pastels because they are a versatile medium. Pastels can be blended, but they can also create sharp lines. And pastels have the added benefit of making your fingertips rainbow colors!
 
2     Pastels are formed by combining powdered pigments with a binder like gum. Pastels are different than chalk or charcoal. Artwork created with pastels doesn't crack, fade, yellow, or darken. Pastels always look vivid and bright. Pastels can be rubbed, smeared, and blended easily to create unique pictures.
 
3     The forerunners of modern pastels go back to about 15,000 B.C. Primitive artists drew cave drawings in South France, Spain, and South Africa. They used burnt bones mixed with red and white earth pigments to make fuzzy drawings of bison, elk, and other animals. Their drawings looked surprisingly real!

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