How to draw people - a free people drawing guide
Draw people step by step: practice proportions, sketch expressive poses, add facial features, clothing, and simple shading to create complete character drawings.
Get inspired with these
Instructions
How To Draw HUMAN BODY | The Basics | Sketch Tutorial
Step 1
Gather your pencil eraser paper ruler and colouring materials and find a flat surface to draw on.
Step 2
Draw a small oval near the top of the page for the head.
Step 3
Draw a straight vertical line from under the head down the page to act as the body's center line.
Step 4
Use the ruler to measure the height of the head oval and mark seven equal head-lengths down the center line to set proportions.
Step 5
Draw a short horizontal line about one head down for the shoulders and another at the fourth head mark for the hips.
Step 6
Draw an oval between the shoulders and head for the chest and a small box or oval at the hip line for the pelvis.
Step 7
Draw straight lines from the shoulder line to where the hands will be and from the hip line to the feet to make simple limb guidelines.
Step 8
Put small circles on the guidelines at the shoulders elbows wrists hips knees and ankles to mark the joints.
Step 9
Draw simple tubes around the limb guidelines to give the arms and legs thickness.
Step 10
Draw a vertical and a horizontal guideline inside the head oval to divide where the eyes nose and mouth will go.
Step 11
Draw the eyes on the horizontal line place the nose halfway between the eyes and chin and draw the mouth below the nose using the guidelines.
Step 12
Add hair and simple clothes shapes to your person.
Step 13
Gently erase the extra construction lines and darken the final outline.
Step 14
Make two more quick sketches of people in different simple poses using the same steps to practice and build confidence.
Step 15
Share your favorite finished drawing on DIY.org
Final steps
You're almost there! Complete all the steps, bring your creation to life, post it, and conquer the challenge!
Help!?
What can we use if we don't have a ruler, pencil, eraser, or colouring supplies?
Use a straight book edge or the side of a notebook to measure the head-lengths and mark seven equal head-lengths on the center line, substitute a pen for pencil, a soft cloth or kneaded eraser for a standard eraser, and use crayons, markers, or coloured paper scraps for colouring.
My drawing looks out of proportion or the arms and legs bend wrong — what should I check?
Check that you measured seven equal head-lengths down the center line, that the shoulder line is about one head down and the hip line at the fourth head, then reposition the small joint circles on the limb guidelines (shoulders/elbows/wrists/hips/knees/ankles) and redraw the tubes around the corrected guidelines before erasing extra construction lines.
How can we change the activity to suit younger or older kids?
For ages 4–6 simplify to 3 head-lengths with big head ovals and stick limbs from the shoulder and hip lines, for ages 7–10 follow the full seven-head steps with joint circles and tubes, and for 11+ add varied poses, clothing detail, and shading after erasing construction lines.
How can we extend or personalize our finished drawing?
After you gently erase the construction lines and darken the final outline, personalize by changing hair and clothes shapes, varying the seven-head proportions to create different body types, adding patterns or shading with your colouring materials, making the two extra practice sketches in different poses, and photographing your favourite to share on DIY.org.
Related videos
🎨 **How to Draw PEOPLE - Simple Tutorial for Kids** 🧒👧
4 Videos
🎨 **How to Draw PEOPLE - Simple Tutorial for Kids** 🧒👧
How To Draw A Self Portrait: For Kids!
How to draw people for beginners | SIMPLE PEOPLE DRAWING | Man Drawing | Boy Drawing
Learn how to draw portraits - How to draw a face step-by-step - Easy tutorial for kids
Fun Facts
✍️ Gesture drawings are super-fast sketches (often 30 seconds to 2 minutes) artists use to capture action and flow.
👀 A handy face trick: the eyes sit about halfway down the head — not near the top.
📚 Andrew Loomis's drawing books broke complex anatomy into simple shapes that beginners still use today.
🧠 Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man links human proportions to geometry and influenced artists for centuries.
🧍♂️ Classic figure-drawing rule: the adult body is often drawn about 7.5–8 heads tall to keep proportions realistic.
How do I teach my child to draw people step by step?
What materials do I need to teach kids to draw people?
What ages is this 'draw people' activity suitable for?
What are the benefits of teaching kids to draw people?
Get 7 days of DIY for FREE!