How old is the child who drew this?

[374jtwqj]

DS just gave me this picture. I know there is quite a lot of variation but how old do you think is the child who drew this?

@VioletMountainHare thank you for that. I honestly have no idea what level his friends are at but it did make me sad that he felt so bad about it. I obviously told him it was lovely. Will also borrow the suggestion from PP about discussing specific elements of the painting or piece of writing rather than going with a simple 'nice drawing'.

They draw just like me. I might say 40

I wouldn’t worry. I think it’s good for a 6 yo. I’ve never been artistic and have done alright in life. My children love playing Pictionary with me and my unintentional comedy drawings.

It’s lovely! Far better than I could do, having always been abysmal at art myself!

I think drawing ability can vary greatly, partly due to the child’s development and partly due to their interest in it, with an element of natural artistic ‘talent’ thrown in.

My DD loves art and is constantly drawing, and her pictures were like this from 3/4. My DS however (age 6) is autistic and his drawing is way behind your son’s - he’s an excellent reader but just doesn’t have the fine motor skills / talent / interest to draw well. His handwriting is also pretty sketchy! I don’t think it means much in the grand scheme of things and I try not to compare his work to others’ and try to remember his talents lie elsewhere.

Giving him praise and positive encouragement is all you need :)

My ASD child struggles with drawing (and writing) but has found huge confidence following step by step guides.

Draw a cat is too vague an instruction, but draw a circle, add triangles for ears, another triangle for nose etc etc has really helped him see he CAN draw.

I was going to guess at 3 or 4, then I saw your update that he's 6.

That's fine, surely?

None of my 3 kids were very good at Art.
They'd have a bash at it, but I doubt they'll be invited to exhibition their pieces at a gallery any time soon.

Does it matter?

I’d say 4 based on what my daughter can draw ( but a 4year old who is nearly 5)

Encourage him if he loves it. Also, he doesn't have to love it!! It's not going to impact on his life if it's not his thing!

4-5

Sorry posted before RTFT. I think there is a lot of details there and that is just as important. You do tend to find their drawing and writing style changes in leaps rather than gradually.

4 or 5

That's my son's level now at 10yo. Small motor skills are not his forte. Despite the fact that I'm an artist painter. But he can beat me at maths!

If I may add, for your own information, drawing is an acquired skill that is learned mostly by observation and example and being interested. Anyone can learn to draw at just about any age, if one has a true desire to learn and applies oneself and has a dedicated teacher.
Drawing is 2% talent and 98% effort.

I was going to say six.

If you are worried about his handwriting and drawing there are lots of ideas for fine motor activities online. Usually stuff like playdough, ironing beads, those diamond kits, cross stitch (you can make some great "pixel art" style pics with these, if he likes computer games like pokemon, Mario etc) he might enjoy doing something like this, or decorating cookies/cupcakes always goes down well too, with squeezy icing and then lots of little bits like the silver balls etc.

And the Art Attack books have some good drawing tips if he wants some pointers on technique. I think he is doing fine, though, and wouldn't be worried :)

FWIW here is one of DS2's latest drawings. He will be 6 this summer. (It's trains in the channel tunnel).

6 it’s very creative and playful

OP to boost your sons confidence frame his picture.
We even had this pic put on a T-shirt for Father’s Day

I love that it's a sunny day, with lots of birds flying about, and aeroplanes taking people on their summer holidays. That poor cat has presumably scurried up the tree to escape from the big dog, who looks like he has just done a big poo (is that brown swirl above the dog's hindquarters to represent the whiff?) I hope that's the dog's owner coming in sight to the left, to clear up after it.
That's a nice wee flower by the pond, I think it is (the blue)?

It's a lovely picture with lots of detail, I think. 🙂

6

Saw your update after I posted, but I guessed correctly at 6. I think all of mine were drawing like that unguided at 6. They did better drawings at school but were basically given step by step guidance.

My 4yo definitely couldn't do that. I can understand why he doesn't think it's good- it's a bit messy, it's overcrowded and he's tried to get detail in when he doesn't yet have the dexterity to do it- but really, the reason for that is just that he had a lot of really creative and ambitious ideas, and at only 6, he's not quite got the skill to make his vision a reality.

Just think, he could have drawn a yellow circle for the sun, 3 identical trees, not bothered with the cat in the tree and drawn a stick cat without a face. But instead, he's got 2 different animals of different sizes showing an understanding of perspective, he's recognised that all trees and flowers are different, the differences in shades in the sun, birds of different shapes and sizes again showing perspective. I think it's genius.

3/4

Honestly at 41 that’s about my skill set. I couldn’t draw much better than that.

we all have very different talents.

Posts like this can backfire massively as you will have some commenting that their child was capable of this level upon exit of the womb. Which then makes you feel even more concerned.

I think it is a lovely picture. I agree with the PP who suggested framing the picture to help show him how much you love it.

What a lovely lad drawing for his poorly Dad.

4

You can tell him he does a much better job at 6, than I do at 36 😬

I love it! It has a happy friendly vibe and was drawn with love and kindness for his dad.
Your DS sounds to be very thoughtful.