drawing for a 7years old

[tostaky]

My 7yo DS very much enjoy drawing. He does gets frustrated when he thinks it is not up to his standard though.
As I type I am unsure what I am looking for...
For example last night I gave him a step by step fun drawing book and after half an hour he came downstairs in tears that it was impossible and how he would never manage to draw well ... Full blown tantrum...

I don't know whether 1) he is being unreasonable and 2) whether I should find a drawing class for him.

I did explain to him that he needs to practice etc but still he was unhappy.
Also I can't find drawing classes for 7 yo. Only art classes (which he loves already).

Finally, if drawing was really his thing, shouldn't he work out how to draw by himself? At what point external support should come in?

[Youandmemillerscow]

"Finally, if drawing was really his thing, shouldn't he work out how to draw by himself? At what point external support should come in?"

Sounds like way too much pressure, which is likely to spoil his enjoyment and knock his confidence now and possibly in the long run.

I would back off and not talk about the drawing too much. I have one child who loves to draw and seems talented. I am crap at drawing but quite experienced at other aspects of art & design as well as the creative process. I am proud of dc's drawing but see it very much as their thing to 'won', not my ambition to push.

To encourage your ds, I recommend to get some fabulous pens, lots of shades and colours, (gel pens are a huge success in our house) and possibly paints, paper etc. Once the fun is back you could suggest to look at an object of interest and draw it (still life), you could both do it together and talk about the lights, shadows, perspective etc but in a curious, 'isn't this interesting' way.

There is no perfect way to draw and every artist has his or her own individual style. I believe that your ds should only copy from a step by step book, if he finds it fun and see it as work in progress. otherwise he should just draw the way he sees fit.

The tantrums might also be due to frustrations at school or tiredness, where he uses the 'not drawing perfectly' as a release. Or possibly due to feeling your expectations of drawing being 'his thing'.

[Youandmemillerscow]

• own not won

[BobandKate0]

Althou i'm not an art teacher or paid artist,i remember the same problem with drawing - a lot of the how to books are frustrating as they use the interlocking circles and blocks to draw things,which i found confusing.
Basically i would let him find his own way of doing things.

Betty Edwards did a few good books about the different ways of drawing things,but it may be a bit involved for a seven year old.
One of the common issues is trying to draw circles by holding the pencil like a writing pen,rather than like in the picture attached,also helps if pencil is small.etc.

[tostaky]

Thank you both - It was the things I needed to hear.

[Youandmemillerscow]

Good luck tost!

[Youandmemillerscow]

Bob, that looks interesting and thanks for the book recommendation. It looks like you hold the pen at the very bottom, is this just for the circle technique?

[nancy75]

My dd has found a woman on you tube that teaches you how to do brilliant cartoon style drawings in minutes. She is not here at the moment, when she comes home I will put the info on here. Dd is 10 so a little older but I'm sure it would be just as good for a younger child.

[nancy75]

The youtube woman is fun2draw meiyu

[tostaky]

Nancy - thanks for that! DS is currently watching "how to draw Greg from Wimpy kid" on YouTube and he is really happy!
I don't use YouTube enough which probably shows my age!!!

Thanks

[nancy75]

No problem, dd found it and drew an amazing lion - I thought she had traced it!

[BobandKate0]

I hold a pencil in whatever way needed for the effect,big shapes and shade are easier to do holding it like a window wiper,only holding it up for fine detail and the main point is not to press on too hard otherwise the paper get dented.
But with a marker pen,i would hold it up and press on for an even thickness ,althou watching the you tube wimpy kid i was surprised they did not sketch in out in hb pencil first ,then using the ink felt tip afterwards ,like they do at disney - often two artists do each job.
Also you might have noticed the youngster struggled to keep the line even,without a wobble,when on the last bit of 45 degree ,as a human wrist doesn't go further,all he needed to do was move the paper or his arm a bit.
Again its easier to trace over the pencil outline.