Explore Emotions with Directed Drawing: A Step-by-Step Art Activity for Kids
In this fun and creative feelings activity, kids will learn how to draw faces that show different emotions, one step at a time! It’s called directed drawing, and it’s a great way to explore feelings through art. You can download two of these activities for free at the end of this post and try them out with your child or students.
Why Drawing Is So Powerful for Kids?
Drawing isn’t just fun. It helps children:
- Develop fine motor skills
- Express ideas they might not have words for
- Improve focus, patience, and attention to detail
What Makes Directed Drawing Special?
Directed drawing gives kids clear, simple instructions to follow. It:
- Builds confidence by making drawing feel achievable
- Supports sequencing skills
- Encourages focus and persistence
- Helps kids recognize patterns and follow structure
Emotions Directed Drawing: A Tool for Exploring Feelings
Adding an emotional theme makes the experience even more meaningful. It can help kids:
- Learn to recognize facial expressions linked to different emotions
- Think about how emotions might look and feel in the body and face
- Build emotional vocabulary through visual thinking
- Explore even “big” or tricky feelings in a safe, playful way
- Open up conversations about how emotions show up in our everyday lives
I’m always looking for creative ways to help kids connect with their feelings, so I thought this type of drawing activity fits right in. It’s simple, engaging, and a natural way to explore emotions together.
Tips to Get More Out of This Feelings Drawing Activity
Drawing your emotions is a super fun activity, but with a few simple tweaks, you can turn it into a meaningful opportunity to talk, reflect, and learn about feelings.
- Talk about times when you or your child have felt each emotion
- Ask what the character in the drawing might be thinking or saying
- Compare how different emotions change the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth
- Cover the emotion label and ask your child to guess how the character feels
- Invite kids to add a body or background that matches the emotion
- Use a mirror so kids can try out the facial expressions themselves
- Revisit the drawings later to reflect on emotions again
Other Emotion and Feelings Resources
- 50 Fun Feelings Activities for Kids
- Feelings Box
- 11 Printable Feelings Charts for Kids (PDF)
- Mood Charts for Kids
- How to Use Emotion Flashcards
- 100+ Emotion Words for Kids (Free Poster!) + 12 Fun Activities to Build Emotional Vocabulary
- 28 Fun Emotional Intelligence Activities for Kids
Download Your Free Feelings and Emotions Directed Drawing Printable
You’ve already seen a preview of two fun feelings drawing activities in this post. Now you can download both activities for free:
- A cute monster showing an angry face
- A simple face showing a silly mood
These samples are part of the full Emotions Directed Drawing pack available in our store. The complete set includes 24 drawing activities covering 16 different emotions, including sad, happy, mad, surprised, scared, and many more!
Enjoy the activity, and hopefully it sparks some fun conversations about how different emotions show up (or don’t!) on our faces.
Thank you for your amazing freebies. We sure enjoy the opportunity to try new things and feel thankful for these fantastic resources.
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the resources. Thank you for your kind words!
Clara