How To Draw A Penguin For Kids? A Step-By-Step Tutorial

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Most children think that all birds can fly. However, as they grow up, they need to understand what flightless birds are and what makes them incapable of flying. So, here’s how to draw penguins for kids with easy steps. Drawing something makes children understand and remember the concept better. It also develops their imagination and creativity. However, if you feel that penguin drawing for kids is difficult, our steps will help you simplify it. Here, we share a step-by-step process to enable children to draw a penguin. It also provides you with a list of interesting facts about penguins that you can share with them.

In This Article

What Are Penguins

Penguins are huge aquatic and flightless birds that live mostly in the southern hemisphere. They are highly adapted to life in water and have counter-shaded white and black plumage. Their wings can evolve into flippers (1). Here, we look at how to draw a cute penguin for kids and provide some information you can share with your little ornithologist.

How To Draw A Penguin Step By Step – An Interesting Guide

Start by drawing an egg shape.
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Image: Shutterstock

Teach your little Picasso how to draw a penguin. It will be amazing fun for him. So, here is a process of step-by-step drawing for kids.

You Will Need:

  • Marker
  • Pencil
  • Crayons for coloring
  • Paper

How To:

  1. Start by drawing an egg shape.
  2. Draw a smaller egg inside the outline.
  3. Draw the penguin eyes and eyebrow.
  4. Now draw an inverted triangle for the beak.
  5. Add two feet, at a distance of half a square.
  6. Draw two Arms from the middle of the oval/egg shape.
  7. Color the penguin black and white.

Another Tutorial For Drawing A Penguin

  1. Using the same materials as above, draw a huge oval to make the penguin’s body
  2. Draw a small horizontal oval for the feet
  3. Draw a small circle for the head and a triangle for the beak
  4. Now draw another triangle slightly inside the body for the tail
  5. Outline this figure to get the final outline
  6. Draw a curve from starting of the body to the end of the flipper
  7. Erase all the other connecting lines
  8. Color the second-half black
  9. Add yellow detailing to the face and white to rest of the part
  10. A little bit of shading to add detailing
  11. Your penguin is ready

Step By Step Tutorial Of Painting A Penguin For Kids

You Will Need:

  • A blue color paper, preferably
  • A brush, preferably wide and big
  • Three colors Orange, Black and White

How To:

  1. Make a big circle with the white paint on the middle of the paper
  2. Color the entire circle white
  3. Rinse the brush
  4. Now outline the white circle with the black paint.
  5. Now draw a slant line little below the center of the black circle
  6. It should look like two ears after you finish
  7. Now use a smaller paintbrush for the eyes
  8. Paint two dots as eyes
  9. Use the orange color to draw a triangle upside down. And paint it. This is the mouth
  10. Lastly use the orange color to draw the flippers and feet
  11. Now use the white color again and draw small dots all over the left paper
  12. It should look like snowflakes

The secret to this painting is to grab two papers, one for your kid and one for you, and show him a step-by-step procedure. Ask him to copy what you are doing.

12 Interesting Facts About Penguins

Let’s look at some interesting facts about these chubby birds.

  1. There are 17 species of Penguins. The Humboldt is one of the most popular zoo penguins due to its ability to withstand warmer climates.

    There are 17 species of Penguins.
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    Image: Shutterstock

  2. All of them are mostly found in the southern hemisphere.
  3. The tallest penguins are called Emperor Penguins. Standing 4 feet tall.
  4. The smallest is the blue Penguin, which is only 16 inches.
  5. The tallest penguins are called Emperor Penguins, standing 4 feet tall, which breeds during the less productive winter months, and can forage continuously for several months. Antarctica is the exclusive habitat of wild Emperor penguins.
  6. Penguins eat fish and a range of other sea life that they catch underwater.
  7. Penguins have flippers to help them swim in water and feathers to regulate body temperature, improve their underwater aerodynamic efficiency, and provide protection against environmental elements.
  8. Emperor Penguins can stay underwater for as long as 20 minutes.
  9. Penguins huddle together to keep warm.

    Penguins huddle together to keep warm.
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    Image: Shutterstock

  10. Emperor Penguins can stay underwater for as long as 20 minutes and rely on sea ice for access to food and breeding.
  11. The white and black plumage often serves as camouflage while they swim. The black portion is hard to see from above the water, and the white looks like the sun reflecting off the surface.
  12. There are no penguins in the North Pole.
Drawing A Penguin For Kids_illustration

Image: Stable Diffusion/MomJunction Design Team

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How can I make drawing a penguin fun and engaging for children?

Including a friendly competition, allowing children to be creative, and telling them various interesting facts about penguins can make this drawing activity fun, interactive, and engaging for children.

2. How long does it typically take for a child to learn to draw a penguin?

It may depend on the child’s age, skills, interest in drawing, and the difficulty level of the reference image or the animal’s shape.

3. What are some common mistakes children make when drawing a penguin?

Children often make bigger oval shapes or similar circle shapes for the penguins’ upper and lower parts, which hamper the penguin drawing. Also, irregular curves, straight lines, and too small or large wings size are some common mistakes. Some children also draw colorful penguins, which is a good creativity, but most penguins are usually black and white.

Key Pointers

  • Penguins are large aquatic, flightless birds adapted to life in the southern hemisphere.
  • They have flippers for swimming, feathers for temperature regulation, and aerodynamic efficiency.
  • When drawing a penguin, start with an oval shape similar to an egg, then add features like eyes, nose, and feet.
  • Paint the penguin using white paint for the oval, black outline, and orange for the mouth.

Children learn concepts better when they are taught through drawing, sketching, painting, illustrations, craft, or other creative activities. Therefore, drawing a penguin for kids can be an important activity if you are teaching them about flightless birds. Learning to draw a penguin can give them a sense of achievement and create more interest in learning about nature and a bird. So, let your children experiment with art material. Giving them a space to explore and experiment will help them express themselves better and discover facts on their own. It will also boost their self-esteem and confidence.


Enjoy drawing an adorable penguin with these quick and effortless steps! Perfect for beginners, this video will show you how to draw a simple animal drawing.

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