Drawing is a means of expression for the child. It is also a reflection of his psychomotor development since it changes as the child grows. Do you want to know what your child expresses through his drawings? Roseline Davido, a former school psychologist, offers us her decryption.

When the child starts to walk, he can hold a pencil in his hand and sketch doodles. It was only around 2 years old that he tried to draw characters: on the sheet a circle appeared with the eyes and the abdomen inside. Between 2 and 3 years old, the “guy” becomes clearer. The child draws her arms, legs and hair in the shape of sticks. “It is around 3 years old that the circle, which was both head and body, will split into two distinct parts. The appearance of the neck comes later, around 5/6 years old ”, explains Roseline Davido.

The evolution is appreciably the same for the drawing of a house (one of the objects most drawn by the children in addition to the characters). The more the child grows, the more the house is adorned with details and realistic representations.

The child unconsciously projects himself in his drawings. “He stages himself as he feels, he shows what he knows and expresses what he would like to say”, comments the psychologist.

Often, the child values ​​himself in his drawing, he applies more to draw himself than to draw other characters. For example, his representation is more imposing, colorful and contains more details (hair, clothes, facial expression) than that of others.

Through the drawings of a child, we can also know what he feels. “Danielle, 4 and a half years old, drew a picture of herself with her little brother. She has a head, eyes, mouth, nose, legs and arms while her brother is a simple scribble. This can translate a form of jealousy of the little one towards her little brother who monopolizes her parents a lot since birth ”, suggests the specialist.

The interpretation of a child’s drawing cannot be done in isolation. To be founded, it must be linked to a context. For Roseline Davido, you cannot interpret a child’s drawing without knowing the child who made it and the socio-cultural environment in which it evolves. On the other hand, interpretation requires observing the child when he draws, “to note his hesitations, difficulties, his attention or inattention, the stories he associates with his drawing…, etc”, Points out the psychologist. Thus, a good interpretation must be based on the analysis of the elements that make up a drawing but also on the synthesis of all the drawings. “You should not be overly worried if your child drew a very dark drawing, with very strong lines but all the others are rather happy and harmonious.”, Tempers the specialist. Through his drawings, the child likes to show his moods.

There are no instructions for deciphering and understanding children’s drawings. However, certain characteristics may reveal character traits. For example, thin, hesitant features can be a sign of shyness, of an introverted personality. Conversely, uncontrolled and very strong features can be a sign of worry or aggression. “However, the health of the child must be taken into account,” insists the psychologist. Also, rather gentle children like to draw curves and realistic children straight lines and angles.

In addition to the graphology of the drawing, the colors are also evocative of the child’s personality. Extroverts prefer red, yellow and orange which they readily associate while introverts are content with cooler colors (blue, green, gray, etc.) and in limited numbers. “The warmth of a drawing in bright and frank colors reflects the balance,” notes Roseline Davido.

Children love to draw characters. Whether they exist or whether they are fictitious, they provide information on the child’s personality and on his emotional relationships with others. The place that a character occupies in the sheet but also its order of entry in relation to the other characters is very revealing. “The ‘darling’ character is often drawn first. On the contrary, the ‘unloved’ being is sloppy or absent. The added character is, most of the time, the double of the author, valued or devalued according to the context ”, details the psychologist.

Finally, the way in which the characters of the same drawing are drawn in relation to each other (size, place, what they are doing, etc.) are often representative of the child’s emotional relations with his family.

Several cases can be a sign that something is wrong:

• around 6 years old, if the child never puts bright colors in his drawings and chooses instead black, gray or brown, this may reflect family problems, school or depression;
• if the child has always drawn harmonious and joyful drawings and all of his drawings become sad overnight. It could be a sign of a breakout. “In this case, the parents should not show their concern to the child but rather try to investigate his environment to see if something could have disturbed him”, advises Roseline Davido;
• if the child draws pictures that have nothing to do with his age. For example, a 6 year old child who only scribbles to represent himself. This sign of regression and self-worth can be a sign of abuse.