I Luv Drawing Animals (with step by step instructions)

 

 

Bottom Line: Must-have drawing app for young kids who love animals (and their parents)! Highly recommended.

 

One of my sons, Owen, is neophobic - he hates to try anything new. He is especially resistant to things he knows he isn't good at and one of his challenges has always been with fine motor skills. One of the ways that the iPad has been a revelation for me is how it has encouraged Owen to try new things. For example, Owen can now do 36-piece puzzles on the iPad and this in turn has given him the confidence to try non-virtual puzzles as well - he will now put together 12 piece puzzles with relative ease.

This is one of the many reasons why I think the iLuv Drawing Animals app is wonderful. Owen hates art; I believe because he really doesn't see much point in doing it. Even art apps on the iPad could not engage him until we tried this app and its companion, iLuv Drawing Santa, which is free (linked below). The app breaks 40 animals down into very simple, geometric shapes which can then be traced. In Owen's case he prefers to color them in rather than tracing the outlines but that works fine as well. I usually help him pick the colors but he likes to do the drawings himself and he ends up creating something that is colorful and recognizably an animal. It's a huge confidence builder for him.

(Owen's art is pictured!)

This app also teaches the user how to draw animals on paper. I myself am not an artist (not even close), but I have used this app to learn to draw certain animals. I draw the shapes on different pieces of coloured paper which my other son, Oliver, loves to cut out and we then stick them together to make an animal. If I didn't have this app I would not bother trying this activity or if I did, all the animals would end up looking like snowmen.

Both the paintbrush and the eraser come in lots of different size options from narrow to very thick and in the case of paint there is a fill-in option. Because of all the options, the animals can be crudely drawn or done with a bit more detail. Younger kids can easily draw something recognizable and fairly detailed using just their finger. A stylus is not a must for this app to work well.

Options I would love to see considered for future updates are:

* Providing more than one thickness size for the pencil option.

* The pencil always reverts to the color black. I would prefer if the artist could switch between paint and pencil keeping the colour last selected.

* There's music playing while you are on the main home page but drawing is done in silence. The option to listen to music while you draw would be nice.

* Having a small picture of the final image on the drawing page would be helpful to children who might need that little push.

Those are minor considerations, however, in comparison to what the app delivers overall. It's terrific and must-have app if you have a child in the target age group.

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If you would like to purchase I Luv Drawing Animals please use the links provided. The cost is the same, but Smart Apps For Kids receives a small percentage. Thanks for your support!

iPad ($1.99):     U.S.     Canada     U.K.     Australia

You can also try the FREE app, I Luv Drawing Santa if you'd like to get an idea of how it works.

iPhone (FREE):     U.S.     Canada     U.K.     Australia

iPad (FREE):     U.S.     Canada     U.K.     Australia

 

This review was written by Deanne Shoyer who luvs animals but hasn't been able to draw them until now. She is praying that the developer's next app will be a transportation themed one - iLuv Drawing Vehicles maybe?! smartappsforkids.com was paid a priority-review fee to complete this review in an expedited manner.

 

Comments

[Linda Verburg]

I agree! this is an excellent! I use it with my students after we've read a story involving animals so they can learn to draw the characters or retell a scene on the blank page!