Draw with Shapes – Turning Simple Shapes Into Amazing Characters
If you’ve ever wondered how to spark a child’s creativity with just a simple shape, the Shape Drawing Challenge book is one of the most engaging ways to do just that. In my newest video from the ongoing shape drawing challenge series, I take one simple shape and turn it into three completely different characters: an elephant, a dinosaur, and an alien. While the video shows just a glimpse of what’s possible, the real value comes from the Shape Drawing Challenge book itself—designed to help kids draw with shapes and stretch their creative problem-solving abilities in unexpected ways.
What Makes This Book Different?
The Shape Drawing Challenge is not your typical step-by-step drawing guide. Instead of showing how to draw a specific character or object from the beginning, each page presents a unique shape. That’s it—just a shape. The challenge for the artist is to draw with shapes by transforming that one abstract form into a complete drawing. Whether it turns into an animal, a monster, a robot, or a slice of pizza is completely up to the artist.
This structure encourages lateral thinking and makes it fun for kids to engage their imaginations in a low-pressure way. There are no right or wrong answers here—only creative solutions.
Why Kids Love to Draw with Shapes
Most drawing books are about instruction, teaching a kid how to recreate a specific picture. And while that’s a useful skill, there’s something uniquely exciting about open-ended creativity. When kids draw with shapes, they’re not just learning how to draw—they’re learning how to see.
That triangle isn’t just a triangle. It might be the tooth of a dinosaur, the hat of a wizard, or the tip of a spaceship. A circle might become an eyeball, a planet, or a loaf of bread. This kind of thinking trains the brain to explore options and make connections.
The beauty of this format is how adaptable it is. Younger kids can keep it simple and turn the shape into a smiling face. Older kids (and even adults) can challenge themselves to come up with the most unexpected or hilarious transformation possible.
How the Book Works
The Shape Drawing Challenge book includes 50 different shape-based prompts. Each page has:
- A unique abstract shape
- A space to draw your creation using that shape as the foundation
- Plenty of room to get creative
There’s no step-by-step guidance, no example to copy, and no suggested answer. This is pure creative expression from start to finish. When you draw with shapes, you’re training your mind to look at things differently.
This format is great for quiet time, classroom art projects, group challenges, or just sitting around the kitchen table with a box of pencils and a curious imagination.
More Than Just a Drawing Book
One of the biggest benefits of encouraging kids to draw with shapes is how it strengthens key cognitive skills:
- Creative problem-solving: What can I turn this shape into?
- Visual reasoning: How do lines, angles, and curves relate to familiar objects?
- Confidence-building: There’s no wrong answer, so kids feel more free to try.
- Artistic expression: Every page becomes a personal creation.
These aren’t just fun art exercises—they’re little puzzles that help children think in creative and flexible ways. This is especially useful for kids who enjoy art but get frustrated by trying to “get it right.” In this book, “right” doesn’t exist—only “interesting.”
Highlight from the New Video
In the newest video in the shape drawing challenge series, I take one shape and turn it into three imaginative things: an elephant, a dinosaur, and an alien. Watching the process play out in real-time gives a sense of how varied the results can be when you choose to draw with shapes instead of following a set of steps.
These types of videos give kids a taste of what they can do with a little imagination and an open-ended prompt. The goal isn’t to copy exactly what I do—it’s to get inspired and see just how flexible creative thinking can be.
This aligns with what the book is all about. Every child will come up with something different. A jellybean-shaped blob might become a balloon, a submarine, or a dancing blobfish. And that’s what makes it fun.
Watch Here:
Part of a Larger Mission
The Shape Drawing Challenge book is part of a broader philosophy that fuels all of my drawing books: that every kid can be creative, and that the best way to learn is through play. While other books in my collection focus on specific drawing techniques—like Trace Then Color, How to Draw, or Draw by Grid—this book breaks the mold by focusing entirely on idea generation and playful experimentation.
I’ve seen this book used by:
- Parents looking for screen-free creative activities
- Teachers introducing a fun warm-up activity in art class
- Homeschoolers looking for something unique and hands-on
- Kids who feel stuck or bored with traditional drawing books
In all of those cases, the response has been the same: they love the freedom and fun of being given one shape and being asked, “What could this be?”
A Book That Grows with You
What’s especially exciting about the Shape Drawing Challenge is that it doesn’t age out. Younger kids enjoy it because they can just scribble and invent. Older kids like the challenge of coming up with clever or funny ideas. Even adults have told me they enjoy flipping through and creating alongside their kids.
In that way, this book becomes a creative companion that you can return to again and again, each time seeing the shapes with new eyes. It’s a great tool to boost artistic confidence without pressure or perfectionism.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a fresh, creative drawing book that encourages open-ended exploration and visual thinking, then the Shape Drawing Challenge is a great place to start. It’s fun, flexible, and full of surprises.
When you sit down to draw with shapes, you’re doing more than just doodling—you’re opening the door to a whole new way of seeing and creating. Whether the shape turns into a dinosaur, a dancing elephant, or a strange alien from another planet, the act of transforming the abstract into the familiar is where the magic happens.
If you enjoyed the latest video where I took one shape and turned it into three characters—an elephant, a dinosaur, and an alien—just imagine what you could come up with inside the book. The possibilities are endless.
So grab your pencils, open your mind, and draw with shapes.
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Kevin Coulston is an accomplished cartoonist, animator, and writer. He is the author and illustrator of over 70 (and still counting) children’s drawing books available here on FirstArtBooks.com. Kevin has also authored numerous kid-friendly comic book series, including “Dylan McVillain: A Super Villain with the Best Intentions” and “The Adventures of a 4th Grade Space Captain,” along with the Children’s Picture Book series “Alexis and the T-Rexes.”
