50 story drawing prompts that spark imagination

Story drawing prompts give kids a situation, not just a subject: instead of “draw a dragon,” try “draw a dragon who is afraid of the dark.” The story makes kids think about what’s happening, how characters feel and what comes next, which turns a drawing into a scene. Use these 50 prompts for sketchbooks, warm-ups, comics or draw-then-write time.

How to use story prompts

• One prompt, one drawing. Read a prompt and draw the most exciting moment.
• Draw then tell. After drawing, the child explains the story out loud or writes a sentence. See draw then write prompts.
• Three panels. Turn a prompt into a beginning, middle and end. See how to make a comic with kids.

If kids don’t know how to draw the character, let them learn it first from a step-by-step lesson in the How to Draw section, then put it in the story.

What happens next?

1. A robot opens a door it was told never to open.
2. A dinosaur egg starts to crack in your backpack.
3. An alien lands in your backyard during a birthday party.
4. Your shadow walks away without you.
5. A tiny monster climbs out of the cereal box.
6. The class pet escapes on the last day of school.
7. A mermaid finds a phone at the bottom of the sea.
8. You open your lunchbox and it’s full of stars.
9. A snowman comes to life in July.
10. A cat learns to drive.

Silly problems

1. A giraffe whose scarf is too short.
2. A shark who’s afraid of water.
3. A ghost who can’t stop sneezing.
4. A unicorn whose horn keeps falling off.
5. A robot that only speaks in burps.
6. A dragon who sets the birthday cake on fire.
7. A monster who’s too small for its bed.
8. A pizza that refuses to be eaten.
9. A T. rex trying to tie its shoes.
10. An octopus with only one sock.

Mash-ups

1. Half penguin, half rocket.
2. A house that’s also a whale.
3. A knight riding a snail.
4. A tree that grows candy.
5. A cupcake with dinosaur legs.
6. A turtle with a city on its back.
7. A car made of fruit.
8. A bear with butterfly wings.
9. A teapot that is also a spaceship.
10. A dog with a robot arm.

For more mash-ups, try the hybrid animal drawings.

Places to explore

1. The inside of a volcano.
2. A school on the moon.
3. A secret room behind the bookshelf.
4. A city under the sea.
5. The land at the bottom of a sock drawer.
6. A treehouse in the clouds.
7. A dinosaur theme park.
8. A robot factory on its day off.
9. A castle made of ice.
10. The world inside a snow globe.

Feelings

1. The happiest moment of a monster’s life.
2. An alien’s first day at a new school.
3. A dragon who feels lonely.
4. A robot who just got a hug.
5. The proudest moment of your pet’s life.
6. A ghost who’s nervous about Halloween.
7. A dinosaur meeting a baby dinosaur.
8. Someone getting a surprise party.
9. A brave little mouse.
10. You, as a superhero, on a normal Tuesday.

For feelings drawings, the cartoon expressions guide helps kids show emotions with just eyes and a mouth.

Tip: Write prompts on slips of paper and keep them in a jar. When a kid says “I’m bored,” they pull one. See things to draw when bored.

The book that helps

How to Draw Cool Stuff teaches dozens of characters kids can cast in these stories, and the Sketchbook gives them a place to keep every one.

How to Draw: Cool StuffSee it on Amazon

How to Draw: SketchbookSee it on Amazon

How to Draw: Silly AliensSee it on Amazon

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