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Original poster

When did your child first draw a picture where you could actually tell what it was a picture of....

35 replies

Poochierama · 29/01/2010 22:08

...without them telling you. Like a face or some such.

My DD is nearly 3 has never drawn anything that resembles anything IYKWIM, just scribbles. For instance recently she has painted a pink scribble ('Peppa Pig') a blue scribble ('George Pig') and a red scribble ('a fire').

She also can't hold a crayon / pencil properly and still uses both hands (although favours her right over left most of the time). Is this ok?

Her friends can do pictures of faces, animals and houses even a few letters.

OP posts:
MmeLindt · 29/01/2010 22:13

It is fine. Children develop at different rates.

If you want to help her develop her fine motor skills, try her with chunky crayons or finger paints, fat paintbrushes, moving on to finer pencils and crayons.

cookielove · 29/01/2010 22:18

If you want to encourage faces and such, children at nursery really like to draw them selves and other people, using a mirror for themselves, and then maybe draw mummy, talk about what to draw, a big face, two eyes e.t.c

I work with 2-3's and can see a huge range of creative skills in the children, i have had a two year old draw a tree slanted and tell me 'thats the wind blowing through the tree' and i have lots of 3 year olds who make lots of random scribbles and call it a house or animals, and it looks like nothing. But i tell them its wonderful of course

GoddessInTheKitchen · 29/01/2010 22:23

yea, my dd was 3 before she drew a 'proper' picture, if i sat with her and directed her she could, but other than that it would just be scribbles, you are lucky your daughter even colour codes!

funny enough, she could write her own name from about 1 1/2

NoahAndTheWhale · 29/01/2010 22:25

DD about 3. DS about 4

ShowOfHands · 29/01/2010 22:26

2.3/2.4 she started with faces.

She's 2.8 now and likes to draw octopi, people (with eyebrows and freckles etc) and flowers and insects.

MmeLindt · 29/01/2010 22:28

Most important thing is to praise her squiggles.

I knew a woman who was very worried about her 4yo DS not being able to draw. He then drew a very rare picture for his mother. She said, 'What on earth is that supposed to be? It is just scribbling'. Poor wee soul.

Original poster
Poochierama · 29/01/2010 22:29

at 'the wind blowing through the tree'. That's so sweet.

I have sat for hours with DD drawing and painting. I've tried to help her draw a face for instance, by drawing a simple face and explaining how I'm doing it.

DD tries to copy but gives up IMMEDIATELY when it goes wrong, and refuses to try again.

It's like she wants it to be perfect first time and is upset that it's not.

I don't really know how to help her overcome this, so I tend to just let her lead the way and draw her scribbles.

I've also tried to help her hold her crayon probably, but she prefers it hold it in a fist.

OP posts:
fruitstick · 29/01/2010 22:29

DS is nearly 4 and draws 'rollercoasters' which is essentially just a scribble. Once drew a circle with 2 dots in the middle and said it was me.

Do you remember that Fast Show stetch with the watercolour artist who started painting then when crazy covering everything black ...... that's him.

lou031205 · 29/01/2010 22:30

DD1 has SN, is 4.1 & can't draw anything other than a rough circle.

DD2 is 2.5 and at about 2.1 started stabbing furiously at a page, then pronounced 'raining' - she had drawn a balloon in the rain!

Original poster
Poochierama · 29/01/2010 22:31

SORRY properly not probably

OP posts:
allaboutme · 29/01/2010 22:32

DS1 is 4.3 and did his first recognisable picture not so long ago.
It is a face with 2 eyes, glasses, a big smile and enormous long stick legs coming straight out of the head. He says its 'Mummy' and it has pride of place on my kitchen wall

Original poster
Poochierama · 29/01/2010 22:37

Oh I praise her scribbles and peg them on the washing line display we have, so she can show them off to visitors. She's VERY proud of them.

Fruitstick - DDs pictures are just like that - basically a massive scribble that covers most of the page in ONE block colour. I'd forgotten about that Fast Show sketch

OP posts:
TulipsInTheRain · 29/01/2010 22:38

dd.... 2.5, a train (rectangle with windows and wheels attached to another of the same)

she's 5 now and isn't a great drawer though so it wasn't indicative of artistic genius sadly

ds1 is 3.5 and has yet to advance from scribbling.

cookielove · 29/01/2010 22:39

I would just let her get on with it, if she gets frustrated at not getting it right. She will get in her own time, you could get her lost of different creative implements to keep her interested, and also explore different ways of painting to make sure she keeps having fun, i can give you a list of different painting techniques if you would like.

GoddessInTheKitchen · 29/01/2010 22:40

don't worry poochie shes obviously a perfectionist

ktbeau · 29/01/2010 22:41

DD 3.6 drew "mummy" as her first recognisable (sort of in that it was a person) picture

Meglet · 29/01/2010 22:45

DS is 3.2 and has just learnt how to draw a 'person', wobbly out of proportion head and body with dots for eyes and a couple of lines for arms, not exactly in the right place but it was still person- shaped in a squiggly way.

I did go a bit mad a few weeks ago and coach him in drawing faces though and he gets lots of practice at nursery too.

Hulababy · 29/01/2010 22:46

DD was a couple of months before her 3rd birthday. She drew a picture of her daddy. Big circle, couple of lines for arms either side, some spiky lines for hair and a face. I was sad enough to have scanned in into the computer for her for the future. Think original is in her memory box.

Mind you at 7y she is no artist still lol.

TheRedQueen · 29/01/2010 23:02

DD drew what was recognisably a ghost at 3.4. The night before's pantomime had clearly made a big impression ...!

Mmmcoffee · 29/01/2010 23:07

My mum kept my first 'proper picture'. It's a huge pink blob of paint. Apparently it's a teapot, and I did it in nursery school aged 3 1/2.

sallyjaygorce · 29/01/2010 23:10

The kids are still waiting for me to draw a picture of something recognisable. Though DS was one and a half - drew an owl. He is good though and his dad's an artist so around a lot of drawing. DD1 - can't actually remember. DD2 is nearly 2. Her stuff is er...abstract.

Clare123 · 29/01/2010 23:14

My 2.6 yr old can only scribble. Although, it's obviously brilliant ;-)

Veritythebrave · 29/01/2010 23:18

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

CirrhosisByTheSea · 29/01/2010 23:30

I think DS was at least 5

He has hypermobile joints, makes writing/drawing very hard

At 3 he was almost unable to make marks on paper, his pressure was so light (if using a pencil)

NumptyMum · 29/01/2010 23:34

lol at Verity!

Cookielove - I'd quite like the list of techniques. DS is 2.5 and just started to get interested in paints (he knows his colours now and likes saying which he's going to use). All abstract so far, I'm not expecting anything recognisable for a while - just happy he's actually wanting to use the paints and glitter finally...