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Drawing ideas for kids

First grade: whole animals and favourite things

Drawing ideas for 6 year olds

Step-by-step drawings for six-year-olds and first graders: whole animals, vehicles, food and the first fantasy creatures, all eleven steps or so.

At six, children can follow a twelve-step lesson start to finish and they care about the result, the dog should look like a dog. These lessons deliver that: a head, a body, legs and a tail, each one its own step, and the guide lines rubbed out at the end so the drawing looks clean. Vehicles and food are big hits at this age, and the first dragon or unicorn is usually a six-year-old’s idea.

Most first-grade drawing ideas are also good directed drawing lessons for the classroom; the directed drawing page has the routine.

Animals with bodies

Cat finished drawing

How to Draw a Cat

12 steps

Dog finished drawing

How to Draw a Dog

13 steps

Bunny finished drawing

How to Draw a Bunny

13 steps

Penguin finished drawing

How to Draw a Penguin

12 steps

Owl finished drawing

How to Draw an Owl

12 steps

Fox finished drawing

How to Draw a Fox

12 steps

Bear finished drawing

How to Draw a Bear

12 steps

Elephant finished drawing

How to Draw an Elephant

12 steps

Monkey finished drawing

How to Draw a Monkey

13 steps

Frog finished drawing

How to Draw a Frog

12 steps

Butterfly finished drawing

How to Draw a Butterfly

12 steps

Bee finished drawing

How to Draw a Bee

13 steps

Things that go

Car finished drawing

How to Draw a Car

11 steps

School Bus finished drawing

How to Draw a School Bus

14 steps

Fire Truck finished drawing

How to Draw a Fire Truck

13 steps

Tractor finished drawing

How to Draw a Tractor

11 steps

Rocket finished drawing

How to Draw a Rocket

13 steps

Airplane finished drawing

How to Draw an Airplane

13 steps

Sailboat finished drawing

How to Draw a Sailboat

13 steps

Train Track finished drawing

How to Draw a Train Track

12 steps

Favourite things

Ice Cream finished drawing

How to Draw Ice Cream

12 steps

Pizza finished drawing

How to Draw a Pizza

10 steps

Cupcake finished drawing

How to Draw a Cupcake

12 steps

Birthday Cake finished drawing

How to Draw a Birthday Cake

11 steps

Rainbow Unicorn finished drawing

How to Draw a Rainbow Unicorn

13 steps

Dragon Face finished drawing

How to Draw a Dragon Face

8 steps

Dinosaur finished drawing

How to Draw a Dinosaur

12 steps

Robot finished drawing

How to Draw a Robot

11 steps

Castle finished drawing

How to Draw a Castle

13 steps

Rainbow finished drawing

How to Draw a Rainbow

10 steps

Superhero Mask finished drawing

How to Draw a Superhero Mask

10 steps

Teddy Bear finished drawing

How to Draw a Teddy Bear

13 steps

Tips for drawing with 6 year olds

  • Light first, dark later: a soft pencil for the guide shapes, a marker only at the very end.
  • If the drawing goes wrong halfway, start a new sheet rather than erasing a lot, six-year-olds lose heart at rubbing out.
  • Let them choose the colours. The colour hints at the end are suggestions, not rules.

Questions parents and teachers ask

What are good 1st grade drawing ideas?

Whole animals (cat, dog, penguin, owl), vehicles (school bus, fire truck), food and seasonal pictures. Each of those above is an eleven- to thirteen-step lesson that fits a class period.

What can a 6 year old draw?

Recognisable animals with bodies, people with clothes, houses with windows and doors, and simple scenes. They can follow twelve steps without help.