Parent tip
Set out markers and paper before inviting your toddler in so the first minute feels smooth.
Guided Drawing Relay
Take turns adding one line or shape each to a collaborative drawing, building fine motor precision and creativity.
Activity details
Instructions
- Place a blank sheet of paper between you with a selection of drawing tools.
- Explain the rules: one mark each, taking turns, to create something together.
- Begin with a simple shape — a large circle — and pass the paper.
- Your child adds their mark; no guidance on what to add.
- Continue back and forth, narrating occasionally: "I wonder what this is becoming."
- After ten to fifteen turns each, declare the drawing finished.
- Together, look at the picture and decide what it is.
- Give it a title and display it on the wall.
What success looks like
Messy hands and a child who doesn’t want to stop. The artwork doesn’t need to look like anything — the process is the point.
Start with a blank sheet of paper and take turns: you draw one simple element (a circle, a curved line, a dot), then your child adds one, back and forth. Neither of you knows what the picture will become until the end. The constraint of one mark at a time encourages deliberate, precise strokes — exactly the kind of controlled fine motor movement needed for pre-writing. The shared creation also builds collaboration and the wonderful surprise of emergent art.
Why it helps
The DfE's EYFS guidance notes that fine manipulative control provides the foundations for holding a pencil for drawing, mark-making and writing when children are developmentally ready. Controlled, deliberate mark-making develops the proprioceptive awareness and hand stability needed for pre-writing (Exner, 2001). Taking turns within a shared drawing task also builds sustained attention and impulse control, as each player must wait, observe, and plan their next mark. The open-ended format removes performance pressure, encouraging children to experiment with lines, pressure, and direction without fear of making a mistake.
Variations
- Play with a rule: each mark must touch the previous one.
- Use different tools each round: pencil, pen, crayon, chalk.
- At the end, give the picture a title and write a one-line story about it.
Safety tips
- Use washable markers in case of table or clothing contact.
- Ensure pencils and pens have blunt tips appropriate for toddler use.
- Keep the activity relaxed and non-competitive — comparing drawing quality between players can dent a young child's confidence.
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