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Education

Drawing: my son hates it and - obviously - is very very bad at it.

29 replies

gordonpym · 03/09/2011 19:53

Needless to say, I am not good at it myself, but this wasn't an issue with DS1 who really enjoyed it.
DS2 5y hates drawing, painting, coloring.., and at school the difference between his works and those of the other children is huge.
The fact is that a certain ability is required at school, and I don't know how to help him. Can you recommend any book or website with activities to print/copy or with ideas.
Many thanks in advance!!!

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lilolilmanchester · 03/09/2011 20:04

does it really matter? I was rubbish at art but have a degree and a successful career......... and no doubt that is true of countless others. So try to keep it in perspective!! I'm not an expert, but if he's not naturally arty, maybe try to encourage creativity e.g. my kids used to love having big bold outlines of things like kites/ boats/houses then we'd rip up magazines and stick them on. That was pre-school but he might enjoy it? Also drawing round the children on the back of wallpaper, then filling in hair/eyes/colours/clothes, a mix of colouring, painting, sticking.... ie anything which helps develop drawing/colouring/creative skills without his feeling crap cos he can't draw well/colour within the lines etc etc?

marriedinwhite · 03/09/2011 20:07

Please try to remember he's 5. If it's any consolation my DS was like this at 5 too. He started to develop artistically when he was about 13 and has just got an A* GCSE in it. A lot happens between 5 and 16 and this really isn't the most important part of the curriculum - DS is not studying it any further but an interested was awoken by an inspirational teacher and that's something we are pleased about.

ragged · 03/09/2011 20:07

He's only 5, he has time to improve.
I have tried to bribe mine with biscuits.
I suggest you try asking his teacher for ideas.

Panzee · 03/09/2011 20:07

Can you explain what is meant by 'required'? I've never really assessed art skills in school.

AurraSing · 03/09/2011 20:08

Does he like model building. My ds doesn't spend more than 30 seconds drawing, but loves making things with boxes, playdough and bits and bobs from the garden.

bran · 03/09/2011 20:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

seeker · 03/09/2011 20:10

I don't think any particular ability is expected at school is it? What LEDs you to think it is?

tethersend · 03/09/2011 20:24

I'm an art teacher (secondary) and it is a rare primary school which develops children's art skills IME.

Do you mean he cannot/does not want to draw representational pictures? If so, I really wouldn't worry, as learning to draw as an adult/at secondary school involves 'unlearning' much of what was 'learned' as a child (make it neat, colour it in etc).

In fact, he may well be far more advanced than his peers

The main thing is that he enjoys the process- if he doesn't, don't force him as this will be counter productive. Colouring in particularly is the work of the devil. He may grow to enjoy art, he may not. Don't worry about it

gordonpym · 03/09/2011 21:06

Thank you all, I already feel better! And I will certainly try some of the suggestions above
I don't want him to become a Van Gogh, but sometime teachers ask to illustrate a text, or make a drawing of the holiday, of the family..... His work is messy and he gets bad remarks for it, even though he is very proud of it and I always praise him for it.
He likes cutting or create masks, but he gets bored after 3 min, and asks me to finish it. He loves playdough, especially playing restaurant with it, more than creating an animal or a house.

OP posts:

seeker · 03/09/2011 21:10

A teacher makes bad remarks abut a 5 year old's drawing? What do they say when you go in and challenge them about that? In my opinion that's an unforgivable thing to do.

Georgimama · 03/09/2011 21:10

I was talking about young boys' artwork with my brother today - neither of our sons can draw what is recognisably a picture of something. DB reckons it is because many boys treat their artwork as a game, rather than something to exist as a thing in itself - for example DS will "draw" say, a space ship, and then he will say "and now the space ship is blowing up!" and scribble all over it so that it is completely unrecognisable (it wasn't really recognisable to start with but it certainly isn't when he has finished with it).

Does that make any sense at all? Possibly not. I wouldn't worry.

funnypeculiar · 03/09/2011 21:19

DS was at 5, and remains a 7, rubbish at representative pictures - like Georgiamama's ds, he tends to draw stories - the narrative of "now they're going over here, now they're being blown up - KABOOOOOOM" is more interesting than a 'neat' drawing of a house with mummy & daddy & a tree (iykwim). But he loves art - has always enjoyed galleries - & one thing that really helped me keep this in perspective was doing some trails at Tate Modern/Tate/V&A etc which took a broader view of art - from abstract art/impressionism to metal work & ceramics. Creating his own Monet colourscapes/doing collages/automatic drawing really engages him, & always has. Worth a try? (It also helped remind me that most great contemporary art isn't grounded in representational work either!)

UniS · 03/09/2011 21:28

Hows his writing though?
DS is also 5, has just finished reception year and going into Yr1. He does not DO let alone like colouring and will grudgingly draw something ( generally a bike or a swimming pool or a skate park ) if pushed, but is fairly happy to write a caption for his drawing.

The drawing he does are all line drawings in one colour, he will be quite accurate in his bike drawings and gets very cross if he can't get it RIGHT. Like another posters child DS likes narrative drawing. kinda " here is my bike and I'm going on a bummpy path and round teh corner and anther corner and into the mud and up the mountain... and by then the page is mass of lines on top of the bike.

I'm not worried, his father doesn't like drawing and claims he can't DO representational drawing. But is just fine at diagrams and the like. DS can write moderately neatly ( for his age) so no worries about his pencil control. I know he sees no point to colouring, he's told me so. The picture is there, you can see what it is, WHY colour it in.

gordonpym · 04/09/2011 08:39

Unfortunately he is absolutely not interested in paintings, museums, galleries, not even natural history museum full of dinosaurs. We go regularly to museums , because DS1 and I love it, but it is getting more and more difficult to keep DS2 quiet, as he starts running, and after 30 min he starts asking "are we done, can we go now", until we must leave, because he is disturbing the other visitors.
His grip is good, and he likes writing as it makes him feel like a big boy. He just turned 5 last week.

OP posts:

seeker · 04/09/2011 11:56

I would not want my 5 year old being taunt by a teacher who pputs bad remarks on his drawings. Have you talked to her about it?

FelixCited · 04/09/2011 12:04

If I were you I'd watch Mr Maker, www.mistermaker.com/ and make some of the projects together. My boy loves the Mr Maker magazine and we make things from it, they have lots of 'skills' ideas and as a KS2 teacher I highly recommend it.
hth

thisisyesterday · 04/09/2011 12:11

when ds1 was 5 he hated drawing too, so did a lot of boys in his class.

a certain ability in drawing certainly is not required at school for a 5 year old... it really isn't.

ds1 just naturally began to enjoy drawing more as he got older... i am sure your son will too

HoneyPablo · 04/09/2011 12:17

How is his general coordination? Developing the large shoulder muscles first is essential before developing the smaller hand/wrist muscles.
Activities like throwing and catching, playing with bats and balls, playing with parachutes and using big paintbrushes (diy size) on large sheets of paper, squirting with hoses, spray bottles is what he should be doing. If his teachers had any idea of child development, these are the sorts of activities that they should be providing for him. Not forcing him into writing at 5 whan he really doesn't need to.

seeker · 04/09/2011 17:08

Honestly, everyone, he's 5!!!!!!! He does not have a problem with drawing- his school has a problem with the way they deal with small children's learning. The op should be taking this up with the school, rather than trying to make her child do something her is not ready to do and does not need to do.

hocuspontas · 04/09/2011 17:12

This isn't a Steiner school is it?

Or is this a joke?

juuule · 04/09/2011 17:13

I completely agree with what Seeker has said. It is the school's problem not the 5yo. Although, the way it is being dealt with could turn it into a problem for the 5yo.

limetrees · 04/09/2011 17:14

Plenty of 5yo boys hate drawing/colouring. My 5yo certainly does - his drawing is roughly on a par with my 3yo girl's drawing/colouring. Chill out! The teacher shouldn't be berating him about it though. (S)he should be making constructive suggestions in a caring way.

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seeker · 04/09/2011 18:18

Can't be a Steiner school- he'd be doing perfect pictures in oranges and yellows exactly the same as the one the child next to him was doing by now!

flyingmum · 04/09/2011 19:50

My son cannot draw. He has severe dyspraxia and has the drawing skills of a 4 year old. He could never illustrate anything. He has just got a B in GCSE art. If anyone had told me this when he was 5 I would have laughed myself silly. His mock piece and another piece are so good that I am going to get them framed and hung at home. Another thing primary schools have heebie jeebies about are scissor skills. Mine apparantly had hopeless scissor skills. Now he doesn't. It's not worth loosing sleep over.

gordonpym · 04/09/2011 20:11

Thank you All. i think I may have a word tomorrow with the teacher, and I won't certainly force him to do something he doesn't like. Maybe one day he will like it, maybe not. Art should be pleasure, right?
And thank you for the website, Felix, bubble painting with a straw may well be a new way to present painting to DS2 (and a new kitchen to DH)!

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