How to use these directed drawing pages
Each animal takes about 15 to 20 minutes, including coloring. One animal per sitting is a good pace.
- Look at the finished animal. Talk about the shapes you can see: a circle for the head, ovals for ears.
- Draw lightly. Use a pencil and press gently so early lines are easy to change.
- One step at a time. Cover the later steps with a sticky note and reveal them one by one. It stops children rushing ahead.
- Draw it big. Fill the drawing space. Big drawings are easier to add details to and to color.
- Outline and color. Go over the final lines with a marker or dark crayon, then color.
You need a pencil, an eraser, a black marker or crayon and coloring supplies. Directed drawing also makes a great calm activity for a stuck-inside afternoon; you'll find more ideas in our list of rainy day activities for kids.
Tips by age
Ages 5 to 6. Start with the fish, which uses simple shapes. Say each step out loud: "Now draw a triangle for the tail." Praise effort and choices, not accuracy. If a step is hard, draw it in the air together first.
Ages 7 to 8. Let your child follow the steps on their own, then add something extra: a hat, a background, a friend for the animal. Talk about where the animal lives and draw that too.
Age 9. Challenge your child to draw the animal in a new pose, such as the cat sleeping or the dog running, using the same basic shapes. They can also try drawing it smaller or from memory.
Games to play with the pages
- Animal story. Draw two or three animals on one big sheet and make up a story about them. Write a title on top.
- Draw it twice. Draw the same animal again the next day without looking at the steps, then compare.
- Mix and match. Combine parts from two animals, such as a lion's mane on a fish, and name the new creature.
- Pet portrait. Use the cat or dog steps to draw a family pet or a friend's pet.
- Gallery wall. Hang finished drawings on a string with clothespins and let your child give a tour.
When your child is ready for more
When these five feel easy, your child is ready for animals with more detail, such as longer necks, stripes or curly tails. Each new animal uses the same basic shapes in a new way, so confidence grows quickly.
The full Draw Animals A to Z book has 26 step-by-step animal drawings, one for every letter from alligator to zebra, each with a big space to draw and color. It pairs nicely with alphabet practice too, since every animal matches a letter.
Questions parents ask
Directed drawing means drawing a picture by following simple steps, one shape or line at a time. Children copy each step, adding a little more until the whole animal appears. It builds confidence, listening skills and pencil control, and every child's finished drawing still looks a little different.
These pages suit ages 5 to 9. Five and six year olds can follow the steps with a little help and plenty of time. Seven to nine year olds can usually work alone and add their own details, backgrounds and characters. Younger children can try the easier fish first.
Yes. The 5 pages are free to download and print as many times as you like for home or class. No email is needed. Choose Colourful or Black & White and US Letter or A4, and the PDF downloads straight away.
Start with a pencil so mistakes can be erased, then go over the lines with a black marker or crayon and color in. Colored pencils give the most control for detail. Thick markers are fun but make small steps harder, so save them for coloring.
Draw Animals A to Z has 29 pages with 26 step-by-step animal drawings, one for each letter of the alphabet, from alligator to zebra. Every page has simple steps and a big space to draw and color your own animal.
