Child Art
First Representational Drawings
Four to seven years
By Lois E. Wilson, Senior Scribe
Former Art Education Instructor, Miami University 

Children when they scribble may intend to depict something but do not have the ability to execute this intent. When their drawings in the slightest manner start to show intent, the child has achieved a relationship with external reality. This is more important than the quality of their drawings. Children pull from their circular scribbles a circle which may become a head or wheel; from their back and forth scribbles, lines become arms or forms. These are put together to create people and objects. At first the forms are usually geometric and if separated from the drawing, lose their meaning. Being able to draw objects from their intent gives the child a profound feeling of satisfaction. Notice the examples. 

During this stage as children search for a form concept, they constantly change the way they draw objects and people. They know that a person is more than a head, arms, and legs; however, they draw what is actively important to them at the time. For example, if a boy draws himself running after a ball, he may draw the legs attached to the head and omit the body and arms as they are not active knowledge to him.  Children have a great store of passive knowledge which can be brought out by the motivation they are given.  For example, ask them to draw themselves throwing a ball, and they are likely to include arms. If the motivation of chewing caramels is given, a mouth and teeth may show up in the result. 

To simplify, everything outside the body is called space. In these early drawings, objects in space, size of objects, and choice of color are not subject to any law. Cars may be drawn in the sky; trees may be smaller than people, etc. The child does not think this is me on the sidewalk; the airplane is overhead; I am smaller than a tree.  They do not draw as they see things. Size and placement are often a result of the object’s internal importance to them. Color is more emotionally than logically determined. 

Give children many opportunities to draw or model with clay their own ideas during this stage. Copy work, patterns, coloring or workbook illustrations can impede their creative expressions if they believe these are the only way to depict objects and people. Respect their visual representations for what they are—a stage of growth.  Give them motivations to increase the use of their passive knowledge. Always be positive about what they have done and encourage them to continue to express themselves as it fosters their creative and mental growth. Future articles will discuss other child art stages. For additional information Creative and Mental Growth, 3rd Edition by Viktor Lowenfeld is recommended.