Last Updated on May 18, 2026 by Masha Eretnova
A rainy summer afternoon or a too-hot day at home turns long fast when kids run out of ideas. This Woodland Animals Directed Drawing pack solves that problem with ten printable pages that walk kids through drawing forest creatures one shape at a time. Parents get a calm, screen-free activity, and kids end up with something they actually want to show off.
Directed drawing works for kids who think they “can’t draw” because it skips the hardest part: figuring out where to start. Each animal builds from a single circle or oval, with every new step adding just one or two lines. By panel six, the animal looks like itself, and the child looks at their own work surprised.
What’s Inside the Pack
The set covers ten woodland animals: bear, fox, deer, owl, rabbit, squirrel, mouse, frog, ant, and cat.
Every page follows an identical layout so kids know exactly what to expect. Six numbered drawing steps fill the left side of the sheet, and a generous “Your Turn” practice box takes up the right. A small colored finished animal sits in the corner of the practice box as a coloring reference.
The animals span a range of difficulty. Ant, frog, and rabbit are the easiest starting points. Bear, fox, and deer pack more detail into their later steps, especially around the antlers, ears, and paws.
What Directed Drawing Teaches
Beyond producing a finished drawing, directed drawing builds genuinely useful skills. Kids practice fine motor control with every pencil stroke, sharpen their visual attention by spotting differences between each step, and learn that bigger pictures come from small, sequenced parts. Patience comes along for the ride because rushing usually leads to redoing.
For preschoolers especially, this kind of structured creative work bridges the gap between scribbling and intentional drawing. The success rate is high, which keeps them coming back for the next animal.
Who This Is For
These pages suit children aged 3 and up.
Three and four year olds get the most out of them with a parent sitting nearby, pointing to the current step and helping with the trickier panels. Five to seven year olds usually work through a full sheet on their own, often asking for the next animal before they’ve finished coloring the first one. Older kids and tweens use the pages as quick warmups before tackling their own drawings from scratch.
Teachers, homeschool parents, and summer camp counselors will find the pack works well as a quiet station or a calming reset activity after high-energy play. The pages need zero prep beyond printing.
Supplies You’ll Need
- The free printable PDF (10 pages, download link below)
- A printer with regular paper, black and white printing is fine
- A pencil for the initial drawing
- An eraser
- A black fine-tip marker or pen for outlining (optional)
- Crayons, colored pencils, or markers for coloring
The entire supply list lives in most homes already. No glue, no cutting, no setup that takes longer than the activity.
How to Use the Pages
Step 1: Choose an animal and print the page
Let your child pick the animal that excites them most. Motivation drives results far more than starting with the easiest one. Print one page at a time so the others stay clean for later sessions.
Step 2: Read through all six steps before drawing
Spend half a minute scanning panels 1 through 6 with your child. This previews where the drawing is heading and prevents the “this doesn’t look right” panic that hits halfway through.
Step 3: Copy panel 1 into the practice box
Panel 1 is always a basic shape, usually a circle or oval. Sketch it lightly with a pencil. Light lines erase cleanly if the size or placement needs adjusting.
Step 4: Add one new element per step
Move to panel 2, spot the new lines, and add only those to the practice drawing. Continue through panels 3, 4, 5, and 6 the same way. The drawing grows gradually, so no single step ever feels overwhelming.
Step 5: Outline with a marker (optional)
Once the pencil drawing matches panel 6, trace the final lines with a black fine-tip marker. Wait for the ink to dry, then erase any pencil lines that still show through. The marker turns a rough pencil sketch into a clean, finished piece.
Step 6: Color using the reference
The small colored animal in the corner of the practice box shows the suggested palette. Kids can match those colors or pick their own. A purple owl or a rainbow squirrel counts as a creative win.
Why Woodland Animals Suit Summer
Summer is the season kids actually meet these creatures. A squirrel zips across the backyard, an ant trail forms on the patio, a frog hops out from under a porch step. Drawing the animals after spotting them outdoors anchors the activity in something real rather than abstract.
Pair the printable with a nature walk for double the engagement. Take a clipboard to a park, draw a deer or rabbit, then keep an eye out for the real thing on the trail. Some families do it in reverse: spot a creature first, come home, then draw it from memory.
If your kids enjoy outdoor activities like a camping scavenger hunt or a backyard nature hunt, the drawing pack slots in well as a quiet wind-down between bursts of running around. Pages also pair nicely with other ocean animal directed drawings for kids who want to keep the streak going beyond the forest theme.
Tips That Stretch the Pack Further
One animal per sitting beats rushing through five. The drawings come out noticeably better when kids take their time on each step instead of racing to finish.
Order doesn’t matter. Kids can pick any animal in any sequence. The fox first, the bear second, the ant last; whichever order keeps them interested.
Save every finished drawing in a folder or binder. By the end of summer, the collection turns into a keepsake and a visible record of how much their drawing improved week over week.
Use the animals as a storytelling springboard. Once two or three are drawn, ask your child to invent a story about them. The fox meets the rabbit at the pond, the squirrel saves the day. The drawings become characters, and the pack turns into a free writing prompt.
Group the finished pages into a homemade book. Punch holes along the edge, tie them with yarn, and add a hand-decorated cover. Now your child has their own woodland animal book to read aloud and show off.
Get the Free Printable
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Masha Eretnova, born in 1991, is a Chiang Mai-based certified teacher, artist, and blogger with 20+ years of personal painting journey.
She started painting and drawing very early and is now an international abstract artist and educator passionate about acrylic painting, gouache, and crafts.
Her works are part of international exhibitions and contests, including ArtlyMix (Brazil), Al-Tiba 9 (Spain), Exhibizone (Canada), Italy, and many more.
Besides her artistic pursuits, Masha holds a post-grad diploma in Teaching Film Photography and 2 music school diplomas: piano and opera singing.