OtterKnow Kids Encyclopedia

Every animal is made of simple shapes. A cat’s head is a circle. Its body is an oval. A bird is made from two circles, one big and one small. Even a horse starts with rectangles and ovals!

Try looking at a picture of your favorite animal. Can you see the circles, ovals, and triangles hiding inside it? Once you learn to see the shapes, drawing gets much easier. Start big with the body shape, then add smaller shapes for the head, legs, and ears.

Here is how to draw a simple cat:

1. Draw a circle for the head.
2. Draw an oval below it for the body.
3. Add two small triangles on top of the head for ears.
4. Draw two small circles for eyes and a tiny triangle for the nose.
5. Add four lines or rectangles for legs.
6. Draw a long curved line for the tail.
7. Add whiskers and a mouth. You did it!

You can follow steps like these to draw any animal. Try a dog, a fish, or a bird next! If it does not look perfect, that is okay. Every artist makes lots of drawings, and each one helps you learn.

• People have been drawing animals for over 45,000 years! The oldest animal drawings are on cave walls in Indonesia.
• Beatrix Potter, who wrote “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” drew all the animal pictures in her books herself.
• Some artists draw animals so well that their pictures look like photographs. This is called realistic drawing.
• You can draw animals using crayons, pencils, markers, chalk, or even your finger in the sand!
• Scientists draw animals too! Their careful drawings help other people learn what animals look like.