How to Keep Kids Drawing Over Summer Break
Keep kids creative all summer with easy summer drawing ideas for kids, simple sketchbook routines, and fun drawing videos from Ms Artastic, including Pokémon, Buzz Lightyear, The Mandalorian, and more.
How to Keep Kids Drawing Over Summer Break
Summer break is such a wonderful time for kids to rest, play, explore, and enjoy a slower rhythm. But it is also the perfect time to keep creativity gently alive. Kids do not need a full art curriculum, a complicated supply list, or a Pinterest-perfect art table to keep drawing over summer break. Sometimes all they need is paper, a pencil, something fun to draw, and a little spark of inspiration.
And that spark matters.
When kids draw during the summer, they are not just “keeping busy.” They are practicing creative thinking, fine motor skills, observation, patience, confidence, storytelling, and problem-solving. They are learning how to turn an idea into an image. They are building the kind of creative confidence that follows them back into school, art class, homeschool learning, and everyday life.
Whether you are a parent looking for summer drawing ideas for kids, a homeschool family wanting easy creative activities, a classroom teacher sending home optional summer art activities, or a kid who just loves drawing characters, creatures, and imaginative worlds, there are simple ways to make drawing feel fun, flexible, and exciting all summer long.
Make Drawing Feel Easy to Start
One of the best ways to keep kids drawing over summer break is to make it easy for them to begin. If drawing supplies are tucked away in a bin at the back of a closet behind wrapping paper and a mystery bag of old craft foam, kids are probably not going to reach for them.
Instead, try keeping a small drawing basket or sketchbook station somewhere visible. It does not need to be fancy. A few pencils, erasers, crayons, markers, colored pencils, and blank paper are enough. You can add a sketchbook, a clipboard, sticky notes, or even a folder where kids can collect their summer drawings.
The goal is to make drawing feel available.
When kids can easily grab supplies, they are more likely to draw when inspiration hits. That might be after breakfast, during quiet time, on a rainy afternoon, while waiting for dinner, or when they suddenly decide they absolutely must design a new Pokémon before bedtime.
And honestly? That is summer creativity doing its thing.
Use Drawing Videos for a Gentle Starting Point
A blank page can feel exciting for some kids, but overwhelming for others. That is why drawing videos for kids can be such a helpful summer tool. A guided drawing video gives kids a starting point. They can follow the steps, pause when needed, rewind if they want to see something again, and then add their own colors, backgrounds, details, and creative twists.
This is especially helpful for kids who say, “I don’t know what to draw,” or “I can’t draw that.” A video can help them see that drawings are built one step at a time. They do not need to magically know how to draw the whole thing at once. They can begin with simple shapes, lines, and details, then build from there.
Drawing videos also make summer art easier for parents and caregivers. You do not need to teach the whole lesson yourself. You can set kids up with paper and supplies, choose a video, and let them create. It is low-prep, flexible, and a lovely way to bring creativity into the day without turning the kitchen table into a full craft explosion.
Although let’s be honest, sometimes the craft explosion is part of the charm.
Let Kids Draw What They Already Love
One of the easiest ways to keep kids drawing is to connect drawing time to the things they already love. Kids are often more motivated when the subject feels exciting to them. Characters, animals, toys, games, movies, fantasy worlds, and favorite stories can all become powerful drawing inspiration.
If a child loves Pokémon drawing, let them draw Pokémon. If they love Star Wars, superheroes, space, cartoons, or silly creatures, use that interest as the entry point. Drawing something they care about helps kids stay engaged longer because the artwork feels meaningful to them.
This is also a great reminder that not every summer drawing needs to be a formal art lesson. Sometimes drawing a favorite character is what gets a child practicing line, shape, proportion, detail, expression, color, and persistence without even realizing how much they are learning.
A child who is motivated to draw Mimikyu or Buzz Lightyear might spend far more time refining details than they would on a generic prompt. That is not “just fan art.” That is creative practice, visual problem-solving, and confidence-building wrapped in something they love.
Try Character Drawing Over Summer Break
Character drawing is a great summer activity because it feels fun and familiar for kids. They can draw characters from shows, movies, games, cards, books, or their own imagination. Character drawing also helps kids practice important art skills like facial expression, costume details, body shapes, movement, and storytelling.
If your kids enjoy pop culture drawing, these Ms Artastic drawing videos can give them a fun place to begin.
For kids who love Star Wars, try How to Draw the Mandalorian! This is a fun drawing activity for kids who enjoy space, helmets, armor, and bold character design:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex6ADUE81gI
For kids who love Toy Story and space-themed characters, try How to Draw Buzz Lightyear! This guided drawing is a great way to practice character shapes, details, and coloring:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYZiNpMrWrA
For Pokémon fans, try How to Draw Mimikyu from Pokémon! This one is perfect for kids who love cute, spooky, mysterious characters with lots of personality:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScOx_L6JCPU
And if your child loves Pokémon cards, surprise drawings, and creative challenges, try Pokémon Cards UN-BOX & DRAW #4. This video adds a fun twist by combining the excitement of opening cards with drawing inspiration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_nlHFmnVjk
These videos are great for summer drawing time because they feel playful, familiar, and exciting. Kids can follow along, then make the drawing their own with backgrounds, colors, speech bubbles, stories, or extra characters.
Build a Simple Summer Drawing Routine
Keeping kids drawing over summer does not mean adding a strict schedule or turning summer break into school with popsicles. A simple routine can be enough.
You might set aside one or two drawing times each week. Maybe Monday mornings become sketchbook mornings. Maybe rainy days become drawing video days. Maybe kids draw after lunch for a quiet reset. Maybe you keep drawing supplies ready for those “I’m bored” moments that arrive 11 minutes after someone said they had nothing to do.
The routine can be very light.
You could make a summer drawing jar with folded prompts, choose one drawing video per week, create a family sketchbook challenge, or invite kids to draw a character, creature, snack, place, or memory from their week. The point is not to create pressure. The point is to keep drawing accessible and enjoyable.
A little consistency can help kids build creative habits. Even short drawing sessions can add up over the summer.
Encourage Kids to Add Their Own Ideas
Guided drawing is wonderful, but the real creative magic often happens when kids begin adding their own ideas. After they follow a drawing video, invite them to personalize the artwork.
They can add a background, change the colors, draw a setting, create a speech bubble, add a sidekick, design a pattern, or invent a story around the character. The Mandalorian could be standing on a new planet. Buzz Lightyear could be flying through a candy galaxy. Mimikyu could be hiding in a summer picnic basket. A Pokémon card drawing could become the beginning of an entire imaginary collection.
When kids add their own details, they move from copying to creating.
That is an important shift.
They begin using the video as a tool, not a rule. They learn that they can follow instructions and still make artistic choices. They learn that art is not about making everything look exactly the same. It is about learning skills and using those skills to express ideas.
Keep a Summer Sketchbook
A summer sketchbook is a wonderful way to collect drawings over the break. It gives kids a place to see their progress, gather ideas, and build confidence. It also turns drawing into something they can return to again and again.
The sketchbook does not need to be expensive. It can be a store-bought sketchbook, a notebook, printer paper stapled together, or a folder full of drawings. Kids can decorate the cover, date their pages, add titles, write little notes, or create a table of contents if they enjoy organizing their work.
A sketchbook can include guided drawings, doodles, character drawings, summer memories, outdoor sketches, invented creatures, comic strips, patterns, nature drawings, and anything else kids want to create. Some pages might be polished. Some might be messy. Some might be unfinished. That is okay.
Sketchbooks are for exploring.
They give kids a creative space where mistakes are allowed, ideas can grow, and every page does not need to be a masterpiece.
Use Drawing as a Screen-Time Bridge
A lot of families think about screen time during summer, and drawing videos can be a really helpful bridge. Instead of passive watching, kids are creating while they watch. They are using the video as a guide and turning that screen time into hands-on art time.
This can be especially helpful for kids who already enjoy YouTube. A drawing video gives them something active to do with the content. They listen, follow steps, pause, make choices, and create a finished drawing.
That kind of screen time can feel more purposeful because it leads to making something.
You can even make it a little routine: watch one drawing video, create the artwork, then turn the screen off and spend extra time coloring, adding a background, or writing a short story about the drawing. This helps extend the activity beyond the video and gives kids more time to develop their own ideas.
Make Drawing Social
Drawing does not have to be a solo activity. Kids can draw with siblings, friends, cousins, parents, grandparents, or camp groups. A simple drawing video can become a shared creative activity where everyone follows the same lesson and then compares how different the artworks turned out.
This can be so fun because kids see that there is no one right way to make art. Even when everyone follows the same steps, the drawings have different colors, expressions, backgrounds, and personalities.
You could host a mini drawing challenge, a family art night, a summer sketchbook club, or a Pokémon drawing afternoon. Kids can trade drawing ideas, make up stories about their characters, or display their finished work on a fridge, wall, bulletin board, or digital album.
When drawing feels social, it often feels more motivating.
And it gives kids a beautiful way to connect through creativity.
Celebrate Effort, Not Perfection
If you want kids to keep drawing, celebrate the process more than the final result. Praise their effort, details, creativity, persistence, and choices.
Instead of only saying, “That looks good,” you might say, “I love how you added your own background,” or “You worked really carefully on those details,” or “That character has so much personality,” or “I noticed you kept trying even when that part felt tricky.”
This helps kids understand that art is not about instant perfection. It is about practice, imagination, and growth.
Some drawings will turn out exactly how kids hoped. Some will not. Both experiences are valuable. The goal is to help children feel brave enough to keep creating.
A child who feels safe making imperfect art is more likely to keep drawing, experimenting, and improving.
Keep Drawing Light, Fun, and Flexible
Summer drawing should feel light. It should not become one more thing kids have to complete. Let drawing fit naturally into your summer rhythm. Some weeks kids may draw a lot. Other weeks they may be busy outside, traveling, swimming, visiting family, or doing all the wonderfully random things summer brings.
That is okay.
Creativity does not need to be forced. It just needs to be available.
Keep supplies nearby. Offer fun prompts. Use drawing videos when kids need inspiration. Encourage personal details. Let sketchbooks be messy. Celebrate effort. Draw things kids already love. And remember that even a quick 10-minute drawing can help keep creativity alive.
Visit the Ms Artastic YouTube Channel for More Drawing Ideas
If you are looking for more drawing videos for kids, summer drawing ideas, character drawing lessons, and creative art activities, you can explore the Ms Artastic YouTube channel. I share fun, kid-friendly drawing and art tutorials that are great for home, homeschool, classroom use, summer camp, and creative breaks throughout the year.
These videos are designed to help kids feel confident, creative, and excited to make art. They can follow along step-by-step, then add their own details and creative choices to make each artwork unique.
Here are a few fun videos to start with:
How to Draw the Mandalorian!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex6ADUE81gI
How to Draw Buzz Lightyear!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYZiNpMrWrA
How to Draw Mimikyu from Pokémon!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScOx_L6JCPU
Pokémon Cards UN-BOX & DRAW #4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_nlHFmnVjk
Final Thoughts
Keeping kids drawing over summer break does not need to be complicated. You do not need a full lesson plan, a fancy art studio, or a giant supply list. You just need to make creativity easy to access and fun to return to.
Set out simple supplies. Let kids draw what they love. Use guided drawing videos for inspiration. Encourage sketchbooks. Celebrate effort. Give them space to make the artwork their own.
Drawing over the summer helps kids build confidence, practice skills, explore imagination, and keep their creative spark alive. And the best part is that it can feel joyful, playful, and completely doable.
So grab some paper, choose a drawing video, and let kids create something wonderfully their own.
Sincerely,
Ms Artastic
