Teach your students how to draw a groundhog! This Groundhog Day directed drawing of a groundhog is adorably cute and perfect for your February 2nd lessons and celebration.
How to Draw a Groundhog
Need a fun Groundhog Day art activity? Teach your students how to draw a groundhog! They’ll love this easy activity that only requires a few materials. However, the result is beautiful, colorful artwork to display on your classroom walls and bulletin boards.
Materials Needed for How to Draw a Groundhog
This directed drawing can be adapted for any primary classroom or completed at home with a few simple materials. You will need white art paper, pencils, erasers, fine black markers or Sharpie pens, and watercolor paints. I recommend proper paper meant for art because it can handle the water and paint and shouldn’t tear the paper if used properly.
When teaching this art lesson to a class, I recommend standing front and center and using a large easel and chart paper to draw on. Students can sit at their desks with their supplies. I take things slow and draw each step and give each instruction one at a time. I give my students plenty of time to follow along and ask questions. You will have the most success if you model the lesson this way and take your time.
How to Draw a Groundhog: Directions
Below are all the steps for how to draw a groundhog.
Place a large white piece of art paper in portrait orientation. Starting in the middle of the page, draw a large circle for the head. Add two ear shapes as arches with a smaller arch inside.
Draw a circle in the middle of the face circle for a nose. Add two circular shapes connecting to the nose.
Draw two big circles for eyes connecting to the nose. Add arches within each eye circle for the pupils.
Draw a rectangle coming down from mouth circles. Add a line down the center of the rectangle to make teeth. Draw three curved lines on each half of the mouth as whiskers.
At the bottom of the page, draw two half-circles for paws. Add two short lines going up and down within the half circles.
Draw a long curved line down, starting under the head and connecting with a paw. Repeat for the other side to create a body shape. Add another curved line from the head, above the body live, and connect it with the body to create an arm. Repeat on the other side.
For the hands or front paws, draw a half-circle shape with a bubble for the thumb from the arm upward. Repeat on the other side.
Use a fine point black marker or Sharpie pen to trace all the lines of your groundhog. Erase the pencil lines with a good white eraser.
I usually complete the activity over two days or periods. On day one, we complete the drawing and the tracing with a black marker. One day two we paint. If your class hasn’t used watercolor paints before, you should demonstrate how to make proper brush strokes with a paintbrush and the water to paint ratio. I usually use larger paintbrushes instead of the small ones that are typically included with watercolor paint sets.
Use watercolor paints to paint the body of the groundhog first, starting in the center and working your way outward. Brown is not the most exciting color, so the background is extra important.
Paint the background behind the groundhog in a bright color. I suggest using bright, contrasting colors, like yellow, pink, green, blue. Paint all the groundhog details (body, pupils, background).
Once everyone completes their Groundhog Day directed drawing, they place them somewhere to dry completely. Don’t make the mistake of hanging them or putting them upright. Paint and water would drip down onto the groundhogs. Once dry, I recommend hanging them up or creating a fun bulletin board display for Groundhog Day.
Directed Drawing Resources
FREE How to Draw a Groundhog Directions
You can download and print the instructions for how to draw a groundhog by clicking the image below.
Directed Drawing Mats
Add directed drawings to your weekly lesson plans to help children follow directions and build drawing skills. There are five different directed drawings included each month of Drawing Mats!
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