For Creating a Masterpiece you CAN pick any to start with, but some are easier than others. So Pastels are probably the easiest to work with and give you a big bang for your buck in terms of creating something breathtaking regardless of your experience or patience – we did level 1 and level 2 with no problems and beautiful results. The pencil drawing is more precise and requires more practice – it is not as “fun” for my big picture, speedy, bouncy 7 year old, but exceptional for a child that is really wanting to draw things accurately like my almost 9 year old. Some new DVDs are being released this spring and the levels are being adjusted a bit with some switching around of DVDs to more accurately reflect skill level – there’s also a couple new media being introduced, as well as some more “masculine” or at least boy friendly subject matter.