According to experts in child development and psychology, however, far from being just a fun activity, drawing plays an important role in children’s development, helping them to communicate, learn and remember.
Drawing sharpens their visual senses and sparks their creativity. It boosts their self esteem if their drawings are pasted on any area of the house. It affirms to them that they are doing well.
By default, all children naturally engage in drawing from the moment they discover they can hold a crayon. There’s a strong connection between drawing and child development. Drawing influences quite a number of things in a child’s life that will be discussed as we move further in this article.
Benefits of Drawing in Kids
1. Hand-Eye Coordination
Hand-eye coordination is important for all kinds of everyday tasks, from dressing and tying shoelaces to eating as well as sporting activities and school work. Developing hand-eye coordination takes practice and drawing provides children with the opportunity too form connections between what they see and what they do.
Drawing can also help in the development of concentration skills; for example, by encouraging your child to draw an object in front of them, they learn to focus on small details and concentrate on achieving a result.
2. Problem Solving
Through drawing, children can work through the emotional problems of daily living and also practice how to manipulate objects on the page. Feeling more in control of emotional issues is an important benefit at all stages of drawing.
As children begin to draw more complex shapes, they need to consider problems such as what colors to use, what a house looks like, and how many legs a dog has, as well as more complex concepts such as scale and proportion.
This kind of problem-solving is invaluable in helping to prepare them for school and further learning. As they mature, manipulating images on paper is an asset to children in mathematical thinking and other types of problem solving.
3. Motor Skills
Most children start making their first scribbles between the ages of 12 and 18 months, although there’s no reason not to encourage them to pick up a crayon and start drawing on paper sooner than that. Holding a crayon or paintbrush helps to develop the small muscles in the hand and fingers that are important in fine motor skills that’s essential for learning to write. In addition, they also exercise the large muscles in their arms and shoulders
4. Drawing Helps Memory
Research has discovered that children give more information about an event they have experienced when they are asked to draw and talk about it at the same time.
It can also help them think about objects and their feelings towards them. For example, if a child draws something familiar, such as a family pet, it prompts them to use their memory to recall what they know and feel about them. Through drawing, kids can tell stories, gain emotional health, and learn a multitude of skills that will serve them well for the rest of their lives!
5. Expression medium
For children who are non-verbal, for reasons of age or otherwise, drawing is an invaluable outlet for them to communicate their thoughts and feelings. With practice, children are able to create increasingly detailed drawings that represent what they have seen or what they remember.
6. Imagination
Without limitations, kids access their vivid imaginations while drawing. Talk with them about their pictures and they often want to tell you the ‘story’ behind the drawing.
Unleashing imaginations in this way can be beneficial later on for creative writing, science, technology, engineering and even maths.
Cute Kid Drawing Ideas
1. Food
Drawing food can be a deliciously fun and creative activity for kids. They can begin by sketching the overall shape of the food item and then add specific details like texture, colors, and any additional embellishments. Remember, the goal is not just to draw the food realistically but also to make it visually appealing!
2. Cat
The third drawing idea on our list is a cute and cuddly cat. Cats are popular pets and their distinctive features make them an ideal subject for kids to draw. Encourage your child to observe a real cat or look at pictures for reference. They can start by drawing the cat’s face, focusing on the eyes, nose, and mouth. Then, they can move on to the body, tail, and paws. Experimenting with different fur patterns and colors will make their cat drawing truly unique.
3. Fruit Drawings
Encourage your child to explore their artistic skills by drawing various fruits. Start with simple fruits like apples and bananas and gradually progress to more complex ones like strawberries or pineapples. Encourage your child to experiment with shading, light, and composition to create vibrant and realistic fruit drawings.
4. Frog
Frogs are fascinating creatures that children often encounter in nature. Allow kids to observe and appreciate the unique anatomy of these amphibians. Start by sketching the frog’s body and then add details such as the eyes, legs, and webbed feet. Your child can experiment with different shades of green and textures to create a cartoony representation of a frog.
5. Bird
These animals, with their different shapes, sizes, and features like beaks, wings, and feathers, offer a great subject for practice.
Kids can start with a simple outline and gradually add details, focusing on proportions like the body shape, small head, and long tail. Different types of birds have distinctive beaks, like the long, thin beak of a hummingbird or the curved beak of a parrot, which adds realism to the drawing.
Feathers are crucial for depicting unique patterns and colors; kids should pay attention to their arrangement and detail to create depth. Wings, used for flying, display, and communication, present another aspect to explore, with various shapes and positions adding movement to the artwork.
6. Dragon
Drawing a dragon is a creative and imaginative activity for children, allowing them to explore mythical qualities and create unique creatures. They can start by sketching the dragon’s basic shape and then add details like scales and horns, using vibrant colors to enhance the artwork. There are many dragon types to inspire them, from the classic European dragon to the Chinese dragon symbolizing power.
Kids can experiment with different body shapes, poses, and features, like the dragon’s head, to give their creation a unique personality. Adding intricate details like scales and using various shading techniques can make the dragon more lifelike. The process is meant to be a way for children to express themselves, embracing imperfections and exploring their imagination’s limitless possibilities.
7. Tree
This is almost a daily visual exposure kids have with tree. It’ll be a very cute drawing idea for them to try out. They can, first of all, start with the stem and gradually add the branches with leaves attached. They might choose to signify fruit on the tree. This gives them free space to expressing what they’ve been seeing every time on paper
8. Elephant
Elephants are fascinating creatures known for their intelligence and gentle nature. Drawing an elephant can be an exciting challenge for kids as they explore the various shapes and sizes of their bodies. Start by drawing an outline of the elephant’s body and then add details like the trunk, ears, tusks, and wrinkled skin. Encourage your child to experiment with shading and textures to bring their elephant to life on paper.
9. Lion
The undisputed king of the animal kingdom is another fantastic drawing idea for kids. Lions have a majestic aura that captivates children’s attention. To draw a lion, your child can begin by sketching a basic outline of its body and then adding features like the mane, eyes, nose and mouth. The lion’s powerful presence can be enhanced by using bold and vibrant colors.
10. Dog
Similar to cats, dogs are beloved companions for many children. Drawing a dog allows kids to capture the essence of their favorite furry friends. Begin by helping your child understand the basic shapes that make up a dog’s body, such as circles, ovals, and triangles. They can then add specific details like ears, snout and tail. By choosing different dog breeds or mixing them up, your child can create an adorable doggy masterpiece.
Conclusion
During early childhood, kids’ brains are quickly forming neural connectors. When they draw and paint, they are using many of their senses, which helps to “wire” the brain for deep thinking such as pattern recognition, symbolism and mental representation.
One of the great things about drawing is that it is a low-impact and low-cost activity, requiring very little in way of materials. Paper and cards are ideal for little ones to develop their drawing skills. Of course, you can buy new, but scraps of paper and old boxes make equally good canvases for early art. This simply shows that giving the child the room to draw is cost effective and no excuse is worthy of any child’s denial to the art of drawing.
