When should a child be able to draw a house and stuff like that my 4 year old doesn't know how to do it is there a problem or is she on track
When should a child be able to draw a house and stuff like that my 4 year old doesn't know how to do it is there a problem or is she on track
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9 Replies
Are you encouraging her to draw a house? Have you done anything with her to show her what a child's drawing of a house generally looks like? It may be that it is too complex to draw a house (e.g. she over thinks it) so doesn't bother. What does she normally do when she does arts/crafts?
Some kids just aren't artistically inclined, it doesn't mean there is anything wrong with them. How is she in terms of other cognitive development? E.g. is she enjoying reading, does she want to learn etc? How does she go with sports?
Do her kinder teachers have any concern for her? Some kids enter prep and don't know how to spell their own name or do any letters etc. so it is standard. Everyone learns at a different pace.
It's more important that your 4 year old can copy. Can he/she roughly imitate a vertical line, horizontal line, circle, dots, a cross, then later a square a triangle. There is a huge variance in what children can do in there first year of school but an ability to imitate pencil marks is far more useful than knowing how to draw any particular object.
I was worried about this many moons ago, my child is smart but not much of a drawer. You actually have to show them how to draw a house, they don't just naturally know (I found this out about this age). I did windows, a chimney, birds (like Ms, I can't draw well either), rainbow, clouds etc. and then they pick it up. I used to get him to colour in and draw his own thing, then I realised, shit, he can't draw a house. To be honest, at 4, I was more focussed on drawing people, he would do a circle for a head then lines come off it for legs and arms lol I seriously wouldn't be worried. My son is glad now that he is getting into the higher grades that he doesn't have to draw anymore, it's just not his thing.
Google development of drawing and you will see the way most kids' drawing develops, then you can see where your child is up to and what will come next. Houses is pretty advanced I wouldn't worry if a four year old isnt doing that. First comes circles. Then normally a person is the first object they try to represent, and then that evolves and improves.
At that age I would be more focused on teaching her how to write her name rather than draw a house.
Ha. My four year old can draw a circle, a line. And can roughly draw a stick person if he copies one I draw. Other than the basics like that, everything is a squiggly mess.
And the majority of the kids his age in preschool draw squiggly messes too. So he's normal.
My son still does those funny stick figures and he is 9 lol he draws as well as me!
Coincidentally i took my 4 year old for her 4 year old checkup yesterday. She was unable to draw simple things like a person, flower, butterfly. He was very concerned about this given she starts primary school in the new year. We are being referred to an occupational therapist, he used words like 'referral immediately' and for me to do it privately because we cant wait for it publicly. Had me pretty concerned. Maybe check in with your gp?
Holding a pencil is a fine motor skill. Does she actively seek out and enjoy things like drawing, painting, threading, etc? If not, then perhaps get a referral to an OT. If she attends daycare or preschool/kinder, ask the teachers if they have any concerns.
OT = occupational therapist. You can either access one privately or go thru community health where you have a team approach of psychologists, family counsellors, physiotherapists and speech therapists who are specialized in Early Intervention (EI) which is ages 0 - 6. Waiting lists for comm health can be long at times, as there is no cost.