Teach Your Kid How to Create Cartoons: Teaching your child how to create cartoons can be a rewarding and enjoyable experience for both of you. It encourages creativity, enhances drawing skills, and introduces storytelling concepts in a fun and engaging way. Whether your child is just starting to doodle or has already shown an interest in art, this guide will help you nurture their talent and spark their imagination. Here’s a step-by-step approach to help your kid create their own cartoons.
1. Start with Basic Drawing Skills
Encourage Doodling
Before diving into cartoon creation, encourage your child to doodle freely. Give them paper, pencils, markers, or crayons, and let them draw whatever comes to mind. Doodling helps them develop their hand-eye coordination and boosts their confidence in drawing.
Teach Basic Shapes
Cartoon characters are often built from simple shapes like circles, squares, and triangles. Start by teaching your child how to draw these basic shapes. You can create fun exercises where they combine shapes to make simple objects or characters, like using circles for heads and squares for bodies.
Practice Drawing Simple Characters
Once they’re comfortable with shapes, help them practice drawing simple characters. Start with easy designs like stick figures, then gradually add more details, such as facial features, clothing, and accessories. The key is to keep it fun and encourage creativity.
2. Introduce the Concept of Cartoon Characters
Create a Character Together
Sit down with your child and brainstorm ideas for a cartoon character. Ask them questions like:
- What kind of character do you want to create? (A superhero, an animal, a funny monster?)
- What is the character’s name?
- What does the character like to do?
Work together to draw the character, focusing on features that make them unique, like a big smile, pointy ears, or a colorful outfit. Encourage your child to add their own ideas and make the character truly theirs.
Explore Expressions and Emotions
Teach your child how to draw different facial expressions. Start with basic emotions like happy, sad, angry, and surprised. Show them how changing the shape of the eyes, eyebrows, and mouth can express different feelings. You can create a fun game where your child draws a character with various expressions and you try to guess the emotion.
Design Different Poses
Help your child understand how to draw characters in different poses. Start with simple actions, like standing, running, or waving. Explain how the body changes with movement, like bending legs when sitting or lifting arms when jumping. Practicing poses helps kids see how their characters can move and interact with the world around them.
3. Teach the Basics of Storytelling
Create a Simple Story
Cartoons often tell a story, so teaching your child basic storytelling skills is essential. Start with a simple plot structure:
- Beginning: Introduce the character and setting.
- Middle: Present a problem or adventure.
- End: Show how the character solves the problem or what happens at the end.
Work with your child to come up with a short story for their character. It could be as simple as “The cat lost its favorite toy and found it under the bed.” Encourage them to think about what their character would say and do in each part of the story.
Storyboarding: Planning the Cartoon
Introduce the concept of storyboarding, where you plan out the cartoon in a series of drawings. Draw a few boxes on a sheet of paper, and help your child sketch what happens in each part of the story. This helps them visualize the sequence of events and understand how stories are broken down into different scenes.
Use Speech Bubbles
Teach your child how to use speech bubbles to show what their characters are saying. Draw an example of a speech bubble and explain how the tail points to the character who is speaking. You can also introduce thought bubbles to show what the character is thinking. This is a fun way for kids to add dialogue and bring their characters to life.
4. Experiment with Simple Animation
Flipbook Animation
Introduce your child to the basics of animation by creating a flipbook. Have them draw a simple character or object on the corner of each page of a small notepad. Each drawing should show a slight change in the character’s position. When the pages are flipped quickly, the drawings will appear to move. This is a fun, hands-on way to teach your child about the concept of animation.
Stop-Motion Animation
If your child is interested in animation, try making a simple stop-motion animation using a smartphone or tablet. Use toys, clay figures, or drawings as the characters. Set up a scene, take a photo, move the characters slightly, and take another photo. Repeat this process to create a sequence of images. There are many free stop-motion apps available that make this process easy and fun for kids.
5. Encourage Creativity and Exploration
Create a Cartoon Strip
Once your child is comfortable with drawing and storytelling, help them create their own cartoon strip. Use a few panels on a sheet of paper, and let them draw a short story with their character. Encourage them to add speech bubbles, sound effects, and color to make their strip more dynamic. Display their work proudly to boost their confidence and encourage further creativity.
Explore Different Styles
Expose your child to different styles of cartoons and animation, from classic Disney characters to modern webcomics and anime. This can inspire them to experiment with different styles in their own work. Encourage them to try new things, like drawing in a more realistic style or creating exaggerated, cartoony characters.
Draw Together
Spend time drawing with your child. Whether you’re creating your own cartoons or helping them with theirs, drawing together can be a bonding experience. Share ideas, laugh over silly characters, and enjoy the creative process. Your enthusiasm will inspire them to keep going.
Create a Cartoon Book or Poster
Help your child compile their cartoons into a book or create a large poster featuring their favorite characters and stories. This can be a great way for them to see their progress and feel proud of their creations. You could even help them add a title and author name to make it feel like a published work.
If your child is comfortable with it, consider sharing their cartoons with family or friends. You can scan or photograph their work and send it via email or share it on a private family social media page. Positive feedback from loved ones can encourage them to continue exploring their creativity.
Host a Cartoon Art Show
Organize a small art show at home where your child can display their cartoons. Invite family members or friends to come and view the artwork. This can be a fun and confidence-boosting experience for your child, showing them that their work is valued and appreciated.
7. Keep the Learning Going
Introduce Digital Drawing Tools
As your child becomes more confident in their drawing skills, you can introduce them to digital drawing tools. Tablets with styluses, like the iPad with Procreate, offer intuitive interfaces that are great for kids. These tools allow them to explore new techniques, such as layering, digital coloring, and even basic animation.
Watch Cartoons Together
Watching cartoons together can be both fun and educational. Discuss what makes the characters interesting, how the story is structured, and what animation techniques are used. This helps your child develop a deeper understanding of cartoons and may inspire new ideas for their own creations.
Encourage Continuous Practice
Like any skill, cartooning improves with practice. Encourage your child to draw regularly, explore new ideas, and keep experimenting. Celebrate their progress, no matter how small, and remind them that the most important part of creating cartoons is to have fun and express themselves.
Nurturing a Young Cartoonist
Teaching your kid how to create cartoons is a wonderful way to foster their creativity, build their confidence, and introduce them to the joy of storytelling. By starting with basic drawing skills and gradually introducing more complex concepts like character design, storytelling, and even simple animation, you can help your child develop a lifelong passion for art. Remember to keep the process fun, be patient, and celebrate their unique creations. With your support, who knows? You might just be nurturing the next great cartoonist!
Frequently Asked Questions about Teaching Your Kid How to Create Cartoons
What are the first steps in teaching a child to create cartoons?
Start by introducing basic concepts of storytelling and character creation. Encourage your child to brainstorm ideas for characters, settings, and plots. Use simple drawing tools like pencils and paper to sketch initial concepts, and gradually introduce digital tools as they become more comfortable.
What tools and materials are best for beginners?
For beginners, basic materials like sketchbooks, colored pencils, markers, and erasers are ideal. As they progress, you can introduce more advanced tools such as digital tablets and animation software. Free or kid-friendly digital tools like Tynker or Toontastic can also be helpful for younger children.
How can you teach your child the basics of character design?
Begin by showing your child how to create simple shapes and combine them to form characters. Explain the importance of distinctive features, such as facial expressions and clothing, to make characters memorable. Encourage them to experiment with different designs and personalities.
What is storyboarding, and how can you help your child create one?
Storyboarding is the process of planning out the scenes and actions of a cartoon. Help your child create a storyboard by drawing a series of frames that outline the key events of their cartoon. This helps in visualizing the sequence and flow of the story before animation begins.
How can you introduce basic animation techniques to a child?
Start with simple animation techniques like flipbooks, where drawing sequential images on the pages of a book creates the illusion of movement. Gradually introduce more advanced techniques like stop-motion animation using clay or toys, and eventually explore digital animation tools.
What are some fun, hands-on activities to teach animation skills?
Engage your child in hands-on activities like creating a flipbook, making a short stop-motion film using a smartphone or tablet, or drawing a short comic strip. These activities provide a tangible way to understand animation principles and see their work come to life.
How can you encourage creativity and storytelling in your child’s cartoons?
Encourage your child to develop unique storylines and characters by asking open-ended questions about their ideas. Promote creativity by allowing them to explore various genres and themes, and support their imagination with constructive feedback and enthusiasm.
What are some kid-friendly animation software or apps to use?
Kid-friendly animation software and apps include:
- Toontastic 3D: Allows children to create and animate their own stories with ease.
- Stop Motion Studio: Great for creating stop-motion animations with a smartphone or tablet.
- Doodle Buddy: Offers simple drawing and animation tools for younger kids.
How can you support your child’s progress in learning animation?
Provide positive reinforcement and celebrate their achievements, no matter how small. Offer constructive feedback and encourage them to keep experimenting. You might also look for local workshops or online courses designed for young animators to further enhance their skills.
What are some resources for parents to learn more about teaching animation to kids?
Look for online resources such as tutorials, educational YouTube channels, and animation blogs. Books on animation for kids and parents can also be valuable. Websites like, Toons Mag, Khan Academy, Skillshare, and even local library resources may offer relevant learning materials and courses.
By introducing your child to the world of cartoons and animation, you can foster their creativity and help them develop valuable skills in storytelling and visual art.
