The Draw My Picture Game

Games are one fun way to give your child a chance to practice listening and speaking skills.

As I said in How to Improve Your Child’s Listening Skills, your child’s ability to listen well makes homeschooling easier and is important for speech development. Practicing this skill doesn’t have to be boring. A fun game like The Draw My Picture Game which involves verbal instructions can make it a more enjoyable experience.

This game is beneficial for a wide variety of learners. Auditory learners will probably find it easy to do. For visual and kinesthetic learners, it is a good opportunity to practice their auditory skills in an entertaining way.

The Draw My Picture Game involves one person giving verbal directions about a picture to another. It is easy to play and requires no advanced preparation other than collecting a few household materials. While it is good for helping children of any age develop their skills in giving and receiving oral instructions, it can also be used to help preschoolers learn shapes and colors, or provide vocabulary practice for foreign language learners. You’ll find tips on those two possibilities at the end of this post.

The Draw My Picture Game

Materials:

• Pencils or crayons
• White paper
• Clipboards
• Ears (Available on the heads of most children though not always used)

Directions:

Have each player partner up with another player. Give each person a piece of paper, a writing utensil, and a clipboard. Tell the players to sit back-to-back with their partners. Explain that one person (the Artist) will draw a picture using only simple shapes and lines. The other player (the Apprentice) cannot look while he is doing it. When the Artist is done, he must give the Apprentice verbal directions on how to draw his picture. The Artist may not look at the Apprentice’s work while he is drawing. When the Apprentice is finished, the two players compare their drawings. They can then switch roles and play again.

Example

Here’s your chance to try The Draw My Picture Game. Grab a piece of paper and a pencil and follow the directions below.

First, your paper should be situated vertically on your desk.

1. Draw a medium-sized circle in the middle of your paper.
2. Draw a medium-sized square below the circle but have the top of it touch the bottom of the circle.
3. Draw a medium-sized heart in the square.
4. Draw two smaller rectangles, one on each side of the square. They should go the wide way not the tall way and they should touch the sides of the square. Also, the top of each rectangle should line up with the top of the square.
5. Draw a medium-sized triangle above the circle. The bottom of the triangle should touch the top of the circle.
6. Draw three small stars anywhere inside the triangle.
7. Draw a small triangle in the center of the medium-sized circle.
8. Draw an arc which curves up below the small triangle.
9. Draw two small circles above the small triangle, one slightly to the right and one slightly to the left.

Done.

Scroll down to see how the picture looks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keep scrolling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keep Scrolling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here it is.

Neat, huh?

Keep in mind that the shapes and lines that the players draw don’t have to make a picture like mine did. They can make simple abstract art instead which is actually easier. The pictures can also be either much simpler or more complicated depending on the age and drawing abilities of the players.

Other Uses for the Draw My Picture Game

Improve Foreign Language Skills

I have used this game to teach both ESL students and teens in a high school Spanish class. It’s perfect for practicing foreign language vocabulary. If your child has learned the names of shapes or direction words like “above” and “under” in a foreign language, he can use those words in this game. The verbal directions each player uses can either be partly or entirely in the foreign language, depending on skill level. Here are some examples of phrases that Spanish students of various levels might say:

“Draw un cuadrado grande in the middle of the paper.”

“Draw un cuadrado grande en el medio del papel.”

“Dibuja un cuadrado grande en el medio del papel.”

You can see how this game could be played throughout the year as new vocabulary is learned.

Reinforce Preschool Concepts

If you have a preschooler who is learning concepts such as shapes, colors, and direction words, this game could be used to reinforce those concepts. You might want to have pre-drawn pictures ready for this age group. The drawings should be very simple using maybe only three shapes to start. Begin with simple direction words like “above” and “below,” then progress to more difficult ones like “right” and “left.”

The fun part of this whole activity is that you never know how the Apprentice’s drawing is going to turn out. Like the game, Telephone, things can be misinterpreted or miscommunicated.

I hope that you and your family enjoy this game. You’ll find more of my educational games and puzzles too at WarmHeartsPublishing.com.

Many blessings,