I've taught in various art rooms for over 20 years now and have encountered some different approaches to drawing that I find very interesting. I meet three or four children in nearly every group of twenty that take a wild and wonderful approach to art. These approaches are not taught. They come from a need within the child. I believe that when we let a child express freely, good things happen! 

 

The Action Drawing

 

Most often created by boys, the child begins by drawing the subjects: men, boats, spaceships, horses, or whatever is the interest of the moment. Mom looks at the drawing with admiration. Then the child begins to play on the paper. He draws lines from one point to another, which describe the action the objects are taking as they move across the paper. Play continues as figures are covered up by the action lines. Mom's response will determine the success of this drawing. She could interpret the action lines as scribbles and say, "Billy, why did you mess up your picture?" The idea behind this response is that art is about the end product and you messed yours up. You can't play with a picture as if it were a toy. A better response would be, "Wow, Billy, a lot is happening on that page. Tell me about it." Mom has now said that she likes the picture and is amazed by the thought and intent that went into this entire creative process. Using the artistic approach, an artist  plays around with ideas and makes new arrangements on the paper. Children do this too, even if they are not fully aware of the process they use!

 

Repeated Subject Matter

Drawing one subject over and over again is common. Children are focused and if allowed to do so will obsess over their current interest. It begins with a drawing of a horse, cat, ship, or some subject of interest. The subject is then drawn repeatedly. In fact the child may go through a few reams of paper and show the 100th drawing to the parent expecting more enthusiasm over it than all the previous horse drawings. 

A parent might suggest they child draw something else or say that this picture looks a lot like the last one. This response could signal to the child that the parent is bored, uninterested, or that the improvement is too subtle. A good response would be to encourage the child to draw more horses from different types of sources such a from real horses, models, or photographs. This tells the child that the parent cares about their interests and encourages the child to pursue those interests.  The parent is allowing the child to spend the time needed to absorb the information. Artists
 

agree that one must feel something toward the object drawn in order to create meaningful art. Allow the child be passionate!

 

      This article has been rewritten from a work by the same title and author,  published first in 1999.
 

In our January issue we described how to do a contour drawing. This is a practise that accomplishes more the more you do it. So I have created a few ways to have fun with it in the classroom. You'll find more ideas on our new site HERE.

Remind children to look at the object they are drawing. That is where the information is. They should only glance at the paper occasionally.


Contour Line Pass Around

Have children sit around a table. Place a variety of small animal figures in a bowl. Have each child pull from the bowl without looking into it. Children enjoy seeing what they have pulled. They place the animal in front of them and using a piece of paper and pencil or charcoal, draw the animal contour. They have only one minute to do this. It may seem difficult to some at first but soon they get the feel of how long a minute is. They will draw many animals on the space of one piece of paper. Say, "Begin" After one minute say, "Stop, pass your animal to the left." Give them a few seconds and say, "Begin." Continue this as they pass the animals around the table, giving each an opportunity to draw a new animal. Sometimes I inject new animals into the circle. Keep it fun and lively. Watch for tiredness after about ten animals. You want to quit the activity BEFORE children get tired. Remember that this much concentration does take effort. The children in my art room really love this activity from start to finish. A finished work may look like this. Look at the variety of shapes observed by this student.

 

A Different Version
This time you can set up a large figurine for each child. Sit the child in front of it. Give the child several sheets of paper and drawing tools. They can draw the contour for two minutes, adding more details. After two minutes say, "Change seats, move to the left." "Begin drawing." Have children move around the table. The variety of objects makes the activity fun and keeps the child engaged in careful observation.

 I hope you have fun adapting these methods to your teaching agenda.


Sincerely,