Running head: INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING

Investigating Childrens Drawing Katie Lederman University of Missouri-Columbia

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING Child A: Child B:

Child C:

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING

Through my investigation, I learned a lot about the development of childrens drawing. I collected drawing samples from three different children, all of whom are between the ages of three and four, and in three different preschool classrooms. Child A is a three-year, six-monthold girl who is in preschool at the child development lab, and she drew her self-portrait during our sketchbook activity time. Child B is a four-year, six-month-old girl who attends a preschool in St. Louis. She drew her self-portrait at home while I was babysitting. Child C is a four-yearold girl in a Title I preschool here in Columbia, and she drew her self-portrait at school during small group time. I will analyze each childs self-portrait, focusing heavily on Viktor Lowenfelds stages of artistic development, and I will discuss each drawing in order of increasing complexity. After my analysis of each sample, I will also offer suggestions to help each child progress in her artistic development. Children progress through stages of development in their artwork in predictable ways, with wide variations within an age norm or stage. Just as reading and math levels vary widely in an average class, we should expect it would be natural for art levels to also vary (Erickson & Young, 1996, p. 41). As I offer my analysis, I think this point is important to keep in mind. While I have concluded that each childs self-portrait seems to fit into one particular stage, each drawing includes details that are also consistent with another stage. In my opinion, Child As drawing shows mostly characteristics of the scribbling stage. This stage typically includes children from two to four years of age, and is described as the beginnings of self-expression (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). Lowenfeld (1970) divides the scribbling stage into three parts: disordered scribbling, controlled scribbling, and named scribbling. For the most part, Child As drawing demonstrates characteristics of the controlled scribbling stage. With regard to human representation, she drew some prefigural circles, lines, and loops, which are all qualities of the

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING controlled scribbling stage (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). Several of the childs drawing

characteristics as well as her spatial representation also align with the controlled scribbling stage. Some of these characteristics include smaller marks, repeated motions, watching while drawing, drawing around previous marks, and concentrating on certain parts of the drawing (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). For example, Child A made several small dots, and she drew them around some of the marks she had previously made, specifically the large circle. This is a beginning step in learning to create a border. She also repeated several of the same motions while drawing the lines, circles, and dots. There appears to be somewhat of a concentration on the center of the large circle, and I also noticed that Child A watched carefully as she was scribbling. Clearly, she is scribbling with focus and intention. In addition, this drawing sample shows some repetition of shapes, specifically lines, circles, and dots, as well as the conscious outlining of shapes, which are two of the beginning stages of visual expression in young childrens drawing (Maryland, 1974). In order to support Child As artistic development, I would provide experiences that target large muscle skills, including painting, paper tearing, and clay manipulation, as well as activities that are repetitious (Beginning stages of, 1974). I also might point out the specific shapes found in the childs drawing, and help her relate them to objects in the environment (Maryland, 1974). In general, I would encourage her to continue practicing, and I would also try to facilitate dialogue about her drawings, perhaps by discussing with her specific details in her drawings, things she could add, and so on. Child Bs self-portrait demonstrates mostly characteristics of the preschematic stage, which usually includes children from four to seven years of age, and is identified as the first representational attempts (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). Most of the concepts related to preschematic human figure representation are consistent with Child Bs drawing, including a

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING symbol for a head, people looking at the viewer, inclusion of a body and arms, distortion and omission of some parts, and inclusion of hair and other details (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). I

believe Child B is in the beginning of the preschematic stage because her drawing includes many of these characteristics, but she does not yet include feet, smiles, fingers, toes, or clothes, which are some of the more complex traits associated with this stage (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). Additionally, several of the drawing characteristics in Child Bs picture are consistent with those of the preschematic stage. In describing the preschematic stage, Lowenfeld (1970) states, Shapes for things are geometric and lose their meaning when removed from the whole (p. 29). In Child Bs drawing, she used circles for heads, facial features, and the sun, and she used a cross for bodies. Also typical of the preschematic stage are the subjective placement and size of objects and the inclusion of known objects (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). Both of these concepts are evident in Child Bs drawing, as she used her own judgment to place the people and other details, the sun and sky, in the picture. One characteristic of the preschematic stage that is not consistent with Child Bs drawing is that the objects drawn are not related to one another (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). After drawing her picture, Child B explained to me that she drew herself, her mom, and her younger sister; therefore, there is clearly a relation among these people. Furthermore, Child Bs spatial representation is also consistent with the preschematic stage. Specifically, the size of the objects in the drawing are not fully in proportion to one another, and the objects are somewhat distorted to fit the space available (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). For instance, Child B drew herself, her mom, and her sister slightly different in size, but all pretty large, taking up a considerable portion of the paper. Lowenfeld (1970) also discusses that in childrens preschematic drawings, objects seems to float around the page (p. 29). In this sample, I would not say the people are really floating, but they seem to be hovering a little. Child

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING Bs drawing also demonstrates the combining of shapes to make simple symbols, such as her combination of circles and crosses to make people, and this is one of the beginning stages of

visual expression in childrens drawing (Maryland, 1974). As a teacher, something I might do to support Child Bs drawing development would be encourage her to observe closer, perhaps by asking her to name specific parts of her drawing (Maryland, 1974). I could also ask her questions such as, What else could you add to your drawing? to encourage her to add details such as hands, feet, smiles, etc. Based on my analysis of the third drawing sample I collected, Child Cs self-portrait also shows characteristics of the preschematic stage. Many of the drawing characteristics associated with this stage are displayed in Child Cs drawing, including the following: shapes are geometric, placement and size of objects is determined subjectively, and known objects are represented (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). For example, her drawing consists of mostly lines, circles, triangles, and one square. Her seemingly random placement and relatively equal sized people were clearly determined subjectively, and she also included a ball and a purse, which are other known objects. In addition, Child Cs spatial representation is also consistent with the preschematic stage, as her objects are floating some, and they are not in proportion to one another (Lowenfeld & Brittain, 1970). She said the drawing was of herself and her mom, but the two people are relatively equal in size. However, I believe Child C is slightly more advanced in this stage than Child B based on my analysis of her human representation. Compared to Child Bs drawing, Child C drew a triangle for both bodies, and she attached arms and legs without using the basic cross shape. She also drew the people smiling, and she added hair and other details, specifically a ball and a purse. According to Lowenfeld (1970), Clothes, hair, and other details are expected by the end of this stage (p. 29). Additionally, Child Cs drawing shows the

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING relation of two symbols; she explained that her picture was of herself holding her ball, and her

mom holding her purse. Relating two symbols is another beginning stage of visual expression in childrens drawing (Maryland, 1974). To support Child Cs artistic development, I would help her begin to organize her pictures (Maryland, 1974). She clearly has some understanding of the spatial relationships between objects. In Child Cs drawing, the ball is attached to her hand, and the purse is attached to her moms hand, which indicates that she is holding the ball and her mom is holding the purse. With some support, she can start to consider how all of the items in her drawings are related. Through analyzing each of these three drawing samples, I have learned more about how childrens drawing develops. More specifically, I have learned how to identify where children are in their artistic development by closely observing characteristics of their drawings, such as general traits, spatial representation, as well as human representation. Although I am not an art teacher, this knowledge will give me the tools I need to help integrate art into my early childhood classroom. I will be able to create artistic experiences and activities for my students that target specific skills they need to work on. An important point stood out to me about the teachers role in supporting childrens drawing: They react more than they direct (Thompson, 1995, p. 10). I was pleasantly surprised to learn that this idea fits right in with much of my overall teaching philosophy, specifically serving as a guide rather than a direct transmitter of knowledge. In addition, I have learned that Stage theory concepts should not be rigidly interpreted, but rather flexibly referenced as a general guide. It is imperative to remember that they are not prescriptive in terms of what to expect of an individual child at a specific age (Johnson, 2008, p. 8). It is important to understand that while childrens drawings may seem to fit into one particular stage, they can also demonstrate characteristics of other stages at the same time, perhaps as a result of

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING transitions between two stages. Overall, I do not have much background in art, so I enjoyed this

experience because it gave me the opportunity to learn more about what to look for in childrens drawings, and how I can use my observations to support the artistic development of my students.

INVESTIGATING CHILDRENS DRAWING References Erickson, M. & Young, B. (1996). What every educator should (but maybe doesnt) know. School Arts, 96(2), 40-42. Johnson, M. H. (2008). Developing verbal and visual literacy through experiences in the visual arts. Young Children, 74-79. Lowenfeld, V. & Brittain, W. L. (1970). Creative and Mental Growth. New York: Macmillan. 22-25, 474-479. Maryland Board of Education of Baltimore County. (1974). Beginning stages of visual expression of young children. Art Experience, Development of Visual Perception, 1-4. Thompson, C. M. (1995, September). What should I draw today? Sketchbooks in early childhood. Art Education, 6-11.