“The teacher has ruined my drawing! She has put all kinds of letters on it!”

The child ran across the schoolyard to his mother and was clearly angry. The four year-old had done his best on the drawing and the teacher had ‘put letters on it’ during the break. The teacher had meant well. Ruined, of course, that was really not the intention. She thought it would be nice to write down for the parents and ‘for later’ what had been drawn…

Many caretakers and teachers of children up to six years old recognise this. A child has been drawing intently. His heart and soul have been put into the work of art. You have seen him busy.

You put the drawing away or the child brings it, you look at it and think: ‘hmmm… what could it be…’. You turn the drawing around its axis a few times, give the child a compliment (whether you should give a child a compliment and if so, how you can do that, I will tell you in another blog). Then you ask: ‘what did you draw?’ The child tells you all about what he has drawn, it is clear that he sees it all in his mind. You enjoy what he says and decide to write it on his drawing. Nice for mum and dad. ‘What is this?’ A car. ‘And that?’ That’s Mummy. It goes on like that for a while. Words appear on the page next to different scribbles and figures. From you. I don’t think writing on the front of a drawing is a good idea. I’ll tell you why down below.

4 reasons why you should NOT write on drawings:

• In young children up to 4 years of age, their inner image still changes a lot. What they come up with in their minds is not always permanent. They are not yet able to hold on to the picture. What they draw today may be different tomorrow. One day it might be the neighbour, the next day it might be Mum. You deprive children of the chance to tell a new story when you record it.
• Writing it down is mainly for the adult, to have something to hold on to and to recognise. It is often something we want to do for the parents so they know what the child has drawn at school or the daycare centre. It arises out of curiosity and a need for structure and order, but has little added value when you consider that the story of a young child is often still ‘flexible’ and the story is already different for a child in the evening. It is also confusing when someone then says ‘but this was a …’.
• It is not necessarily about WHAT the child has drawn, but also about HOW. With young children, it is much more interesting to see the use of lines, dynamics and colours. Which basic shapes are recognisable and what does that say about the child’s developmental phase? How did the drawing come about and what does that say about the child’s personal characteristics? Where can we support and stimulate him? This information is very valuable for parents, caretakers and teachers to support a child in its development.
• Children don’t always like it. I remember well how a child ran to his mother in the schoolyard and angrily shouted “the teacher has ruined my drawing! She put all kinds of letters on it!” Remember that it is the child’s drawing, not yours.

Do you still want to give the parents information about what the child has drawn?

• Only do this if the child asks for it. Sometimes it is very important for a child to be understood and he or she wants to have it written down, this is a point of attention for you: what makes it so important that the child wants this to be clear? And: by whom does it want to be understood more?
• If the child does it themselves, it is of course fine.
• Ask yourself if writing the name has to be on the front or if it can also be on the back. Give children the choice: ‘write your name on the drawing, you can choose whether to do it on the front or the back’. Ask what the child wants: ‘Shall I write your name on the front or the back?
• Some stories with drawings are too cute not to share with parents. It is fine if you want to give parents information about what their child has drawn or said; just write it on the back of the drawing.