“I Can’t Stop Laughing At It”: 39 Times Kids Proudly Presented Their Wild Drawings As Art

Drawing is one of the first ways kids start to express themselves. Some children might even start drawing before they start talking. Experts estimate that kids start doodling at around 12 to 18 months. Since they don't have fully developed motor skills yet, kids usually move their whole arms to draw, requiring large sheets of paper and sizable crayons, markers, and pens.

Early kids' drawings don't make much sense. When they're two or three years old, they might draw circles, lines, zigzags, and so on. Colors become interesting, too; toddlers feel especially proud of deciding which color to use. Given that, kids of this age can try to draw something familiar or things that remind them of something. However, most times, as you'll see from this list, they're rarely successful.

As they get older, kids start drawing figures, especially humans. A circle with two sticks usually represents a person, and kids aged three to four start depicting that in their drawings. At this age, children also start trying to name what they're drawing, often including letters in their pieces, even if they can't read and write yet.

By the age of four to five, kids begin to tell stories with their drawings. When sketching their family, kids will make the most important person to them the biggest; for example, Mom. A new style might emerge for some kids, which experts call "X-ray style." An example of that would be a house that we can see inside of from the outside.

Drawing helps kids refine their motor and develop their cognitive skills. But that's an unlikely reason why they like it so much. Kids would much rather draw something than, say, learn or do another kind of strenuous mental or physical activity. That might be because it makes them feel happy (duh!) and helps them regulate their emotions.

A 2021 study showed that drawing distracts children from being in a sad mood. It didn't matter what they were drawing, whether imaginary or real scenes; all that mattered was the process of drawing itself.

When kids draw a person with some extra legs, that doesn't mean they don't know what a human looks like. Researchers have found that kids sometimes add silly things to their drawings simply because they think it's funny. Even if sometimes their drawings aren't accurate, the drawings reflect what they know about the world.

For example, researchers in 2024 found that even when a kid draws a tiger that doesn't really look like a tiger, it still seems like a sort of animal. That indicates that the toddler or child understands what a tiger is and simply doesn't have the artistic ability to depict it accurately.

At the same time, kids don't draw what they don't know or haven't seen and encountered yet. Children's developmental specialist Dr. Melodie de Jager explains that if a child is not aware of a windmill, they will not draw a windmill. Interestingly, that extends to the child when they draw a self-portrait.

"If they are not aware that they are standing on solid ground, they do not draw a grounding line underneath their self-portrait," de Jager writes. "If they are not aware of their ears, they do not draw them nor use them to listen the first time. If they do not spontaneously draw a neck, it is a sure way of telling that the child is not ready to read or write yet."

Not just drawing, but art therapy in general helps kids develop their emotional intelligence. Sometimes, big feelings can be hard for kids to verbalize. Through drawings, kids can express what they're feeling, thus helping them learn how to deal with emotional outbursts and unwanted emotions.

Mental health experts often use the "emotion wheel" tool with children when they can't clearly identify what they are feeling. They are given visual representations of emotions with different shapes and colors. By choosing certain colors to draw with, they connect with their emotions, making it easier for themselves and their parents to understand what is bothering them.

When the emotion is identified, kids do a certain art technique. If they're stressed, molding something from clay may help release that tension. If they're anxious, coloring mandalas is often recommended. To get rid of anger or frustration, kids are encouraged to draw or paint with large brush strokes vigorously. Less traditional methods like throwing paint-filled balloons onto a huge canvas may also interest other kids with pent-up anger.

Which of these drawings by kids made you crack up the most, Pandas? Share your favorites with us in the comments! Also, show us similar masterpieces that the little da Vincis and van Goghs in your family have conjured up this week! And be sure to check out this story about an aunt who was shocked by her nephew's drawings.