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Running Head: HAPPY FAMILY DRAWING ANALYSIS 1

Happy Family Drawing Analysis


Abby Turnbull
University of Missouri











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Happy Family Drawing Analysis
The topic of this paper is to look at a students art piece and be able to identify
characteristics in the art that can tell about the student and his/her cognitive ability. There
are categories that each student piece of work can fall into. There are three aspects that
have to be analyzed and considered before placing a student in a specific category; these
include drawing characteristics, space representation, and human figure representation
(Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). Within the three aspects there are six categories are in order
by age all the way until 17: scribbling (two-four), pre-schematic (four-seven), schematic
(seven-nine), gang (nine-twelve), pseudo-naturalistic (twelve-fourteen) and adolescent
(fourteen-seventeen) (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). The focus of this report is to analyze a
childs art piece and how that ability of analyzing can influences teachers. The importance
of what an analyzed drawing can show about a childs environment and development at a
cognitive level will help teachers get to know that child better. Looking at the piece that
was picked, a drawing of humans, you should be able to tell a lot about a child even though
the viewer knows nothing concrete.
Method
In this paper for LTC 4240, I was instructed to select a drawing and analyze the
drawing based on the aspects described in the Creative & Mental Growth segment found
in the LTC 4240 course booklet pages 47 to 52 by W.L Brittain and V. Lowenfield. The
theory by these two theorists (Brittain and Lowenfield) can be summed up by Childrens
abilities to create drawings and to understand art develop in a parallel fashion to changes
in their cognitive, emotional, social and physical growth (Erickson & Young, 1996). I will
be looking under the descriptions of the three aspects to see if my particular student piece
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fits under a majority of the descriptions given. This analysis should give insight to the
member on the age of the child based on the types of scribbles to as far as how naturalistic
a drawing is. A drawing can fit in two categories if a childs development is in-between
stages; there is some overlap in the stages in regards to age. Last, I will apply the
knowledge from the findings to understand its effect on choice making for the early
childhood or elementary classroom teacher.
Findings
As I analyzed the student piece, I saw many distinctions that led me conclude that
the student is in the pre-schematic stage. This means that the student is most likely four-
seven (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). This stage is going to be when they have their first
representational attempts (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). The first aspect of the pre-
schematic stage is drawing characteristics: the shapes for things are geometric and lose
their meanings, placement and size of objects are determined subjectively, objects drawn
are not related to one another, art becomes communication with the self, known objects
seem to be catalogued or listed pictorially and can copy a square at age four, a triangle at
five (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). The humans in the childs drawing are made up of a big
circle for the head, and a relatively rectangular body shape, which are two geometric
shapes. The artist was a subjective in the size of the body parts and then placement of the
sun. The objects in the picture are related to each other but not in a very specific way. In
this picture, the people are all outside together while the sun is shining and maybe this is
something the artist is remember or trying to replicate. The people are all together on the
ground and the sky (sun/clouds) are all together and there is nothing in-between which
gives the look that they are all being placed together for a reason.
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The next aspect of the pre-schematic stage is space representation which includes:
objects seem to float around page, paper sometimes turned or rotated while drawing, size
of objects not in proportion to on another, objects are distorted to fit available space, and
space seems to surround child (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). The objects are somewhat
correct but all on the people are floating with nothing to stand on; some of the people legs
are shorter than others. The objects are all disproportionate with the most notable being
that the heads of the humans are bigger than the sun. There are other examples of the
disproportionate objects are the clouds being smaller than the people and some humans
only being as tall anothers waist. The humans are really big to fill the gap between the sky
and the ground instead of just leaving it open. In this picture, I am not sure who the artist is
so I dont know if the child is in the center of the space.
The last aspect of the pre-schematic stage is the human figure representation and
includes: head-feet symbol grows out of scribble, flexible symbol, constantly changing,
people are looking at viewer, usually smiling, gradual inclusion of arms (often from head),
body, fingers, toes, distortion and omission of parts is to be expected and clothes, hair and
other detail expected by end of this stage (Brittain & Lowenfield, 1970). There is an
obvious attempt at making the humans and they are not scribble but are far from being in
the adolescent stage. As I am only analyzing one piece of this child, I do not know if the
human representation is constantly changing and evolving. The humans are looking at the
view and are all smiling (even the sun). The arms look as though they were added in yellow
like an after thought since the whole drawing except the hair is in orange. The humans all
have arms, fingers heads, legs, feet and most have what represents buttons of shirts.
Conclusion
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This research helped me understand the developmental stages that children will go
through as they age. I think my findings (if the age of the child is four to seven) shows how
a student would be right on track to get through the stage. I think if you continue to
facilitate time for art and monitor the improvement of each child as they go that it will
encourage the students art. You have to give them time to continue to grow and express as
they create art. Integrating art and time for art into a classroom requires collaboration,
research, intentional alignment and practical application and thats going to be the
difference in giving children what they need to create art (Riley, 2013). As they are
developing, this time to create art will give them time to develop the right side of the brain
more. This is the type of thinking because it cannot be replicated by a computer and that
is what art is all about, capturing things (Nasser, 2009). Especially since were moving into
an era in which R-Directed Thinking will increasingly determine who gets ahead and art
can help develop this thinking (Pink, 2005, p. 30).










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References
Brittain W.L. & V. Lowenfield. (1970). Creative and Mental Growth. . Mizzou Media Custom
Publishing Booklet for LTC 4240 Art for Children-Sections 1, 2, and 3 SS2014 (pp. 46-
51). New York, NY: Macmillan Co.
Erickson, M. & Young, B. (1996, October). What every educator should (but maybe doesnt)
know. Mizzou Media Custom Publishing Booklet for LTC 4240 Art for Children-
Sections 1, 2, and 3 SS2014 (pp. 36-38).
Nasser, H. (2009, November 16). L-directed vs r-directed thinking. Retrieved September
21, 2013.
Pink, D. (2005). A whole new mind. New York, NY: Riverhead.
Riley, S. (2013, April 13). Use arts integration to enhance common core. Retrieved
September 21, 2014.

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