Zen Vibes

How to Draw a Bird

  • 8 steps
  • Ages 6 and up
  • About 15 minutes
  • easy

This bird is a good drawing for children who want clear, simple shapes. You start with one big body shape, then add the round head, wing, beak, eye, feet, tail, and branch. The dotted lines are light guides to help with the size and place of each part. The black lines show what to draw in each step. At the end, go over the lines you want to keep and rub out the dotted guides.

What you need: a pencil, an eraser, black pen or marker, paper.

Print this guide as a PDF, 338 KB
  1. A large black egg-shaped body is drawn in the center, with pale dotted guides for the head, tail, branch, feet, and leaves around it.

    Step 1

    Draw the body

    Draw a large egg shape for the bird's body in the middle of the page. Make it a little wider at the bottom.

  2. A round black head is added above and to the right of the body, while the body and other guides stay pale grey.

    Step 2

    Add the head

    Draw a round head at the top right of the body. Leave a small gap where the head meets the body.

  3. A black wing with two feather lines is drawn on the left side of the grey body, with the head and other parts still shown as guides.

    Step 3

    Draw the wing

    On the left side of the body, draw a long curved wing shape. Add two short curved lines at the bottom of the wing for feathers.

  4. A black triangular beak is added to the right side of the pale grey head, while the wing and body remain from earlier steps.

    Step 4

    Add the beak

    Draw a small pointed triangle for the beak on the right side of the head. Keep the middle of the triangle open.

  5. A solid black eye is added inside the pale grey head, with the beak, wing, and body already in place.

    Step 5

    Draw the eye

    Draw a small filled circle for the eye inside the head. Place it near the top right area of the face.

  6. Two black legs and three-toed feet are drawn under the body, reaching down toward the dotted branch guide.

    Step 6

    Add the legs and feet

    Draw two short legs coming down from the body. At the end of each leg, draw three small toes.

  7. Two black tail feathers are added behind the bird, and a thick branch with a fork and two leaves is drawn underneath.

    Step 7

    Draw the tail and branch

    Draw two long tail feathers at the back of the bird. Then draw the branch underneath, including the fork and two leaves on the right.

  8. The finished drawing shows a bird with a round head, eye, beak, wing, tail, feet, and branch in clean black lines, with the dotted guides removed.

    Finished

    Finish the bird

    Go over the body, head, wing, beak, eye, legs, tail, and branch lines you are keeping. Rub out the dotted guide lines to leave the finished bird.

Tips for this one

  • Draw the dotted guide shapes lightly so they are easy to rub out.
  • Keep the head round and the body bigger than the head.
  • Make the toes small and simple.

Now try this

  • Draw two birds on the same branch.
  • Add more leaves or flowers around the branch.
  • Color the bird like a robin, sparrow, or bluebird.

Questions

What if my bird body is not the same shape as the picture?
That is fine. A slightly rounder or taller body will still look like a bird. Keep going and add the other parts.
Do I have to draw the dotted guides first?
The guides help place the shapes, so they are useful. If you feel confident, you can draw the final lines without them.
How can I make my bird look different?
You can change the tail, wing shape, or beak size. You can also draw a different eye or add patterns on the feathers.

Now print the pet bird coloring pages →

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