Drawing in the Dark

Here's an art activity from the rec therapists at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.

via

2 or more players

Ages: 6 and up

Need pencils (or crayons) and paper

Go!

Begin by turning the lights out. An adult then starts telling a story.

The kids have to draw, in the dark, what the adult asks them to draw.

This is a lot of fun for the kids to do! Since they can't see, you can expect some pretty funny pieces of art to come about.

Example, an adult says, "There was once a rabbit named Randy. Draw Randy." The kids then draw a rabbit on their papers.

The story continues, "Randy had a friend named John, who was a horse. Draw John." The kids then draw a horse.

"Randy and John liked to play in the lake. Draw the lake." The kids draw a lake.

"They like playing with Tommy, a turtle, when they are at the lake. Draw Tommy". And the kids draw a turtle.

"The turtle had a friend named Buddy. Buddy was a bird". The kids then draw a bird.

"Buddy had a nice birdhouse that his family lived in". They draw the bird's house.

Try to keep the story to 5 or 10 minutes. It's not easy to draw in the dark!

After the story is finished, the lights are turned on. The kids show each other their drawings.

Get ready for a lot of laughs with this activity!

A rabbit may look like a snowman! A lake may look like a rock!

A turtle may look like a dinosaur!

Processing:

·Talk about the frustration of drawing in the dark; did their drawings turn out the way they expected? How can this relate to your life? Do things always turn out the way we plan? What coping skills can we use to overcome the frustration you may feel when things don’t turn out the way you plan? How can you get “more light” on your situation so you are not “drawing in the dark” or living unexpectedly?