The trick with kids pictionary words is to choose things a four-year-old can draw in a minute and a seven-year-old can recognise at a glance. Round shapes, simple animals and familiar objects do it. Below are 50 words, sorted by how hard they are to draw, with tips for playing at the kitchen table or in a draw and guess game online with friends and cousins.
What makes a word good for young children?
Three things. It is a thing they know from daily life. It has a simple outline: a circle, a triangle, a few lines. And it has one obvious feature that gives it away, like a trunk or a tail. Avoid abstract words, anything with small details, and words with two or more parts.
The easiest 15 (ages 4 and up)
- sun
- moon
- star
- heart
- ball
- house
- tree
- flower
- cloud
- fish
- cat
- snowman
- kite
- balloon
- cupcake
The next 20 (ages 5 and up)
- rainbow
- umbrella
- boat
- bus
- train
- rocket
- robot
- dinosaur
- butterfly
- spider web
- slide
- swing
- rabbit
- dragon
- castle
- crown
- bicycle
- teddy bear
- ice lolly
- pirate hat
The trickier 15 (ages 7 and up)
- lighthouse
- windmill
- treehouse
- tent
- campfire
- waterfall
- sandcastle
- fire engine
- hot air balloon
- magic wand
- space ship
- birthday cake
- playground
- zoo keeper
- giant
How do you play with young children?
Make the drawer's job easy. Give children two minutes instead of one, and let an adult help to draw. Let the guessers shout out. The goal is laughter, not scoring.
For a team game, put a grown-up with each child. The adult draws the first line and the child finishes. For a silent version, let the drawer act out the word instead of drawing, and see who gets it.
How do you teach a child to draw for the game?
Show them that every picture is built from four shapes: a circle, a square, a triangle and a line. A cat is a circle with two triangles and some lines. A house is a square with a triangle on top. Practise for two minutes before the game, drawing a few of the easy words together on a sheet of paper, then start. Children who have seen the trick draw with more confidence and fewer tears.
It also helps to agree that colour does not matter. If you play on a screen, a single pen colour is enough, and the guessers will not mind.
What if a child cannot draw?
Nobody can, at that age. Praise the effort: "Oh, I can see the wheels!" A child who feels clever draws again. A child who feels silly stops.
How do you play online?
A draw and guess game online lets children draw with a finger on a tablet, which is often easier than a pencil. Set the drawing time to 120 seconds and the hints to three, and add your own list of words in the custom words field. On Boardit, a free site I make, up to twelve people can play a drawing game online, so a whole family can join from different homes.
Some house rules for kids
- No guessing out of turn when the drawer is a small child.
- Everyone gets a point for the effort.
- Drawings can be silly on purpose.
- The youngest draws first.
What next?
When a child masters this list, move to words with two parts, such as "ice cream" and "fire engine", and then to sayings. Each step is a small test of imagination, and the game grows with the child.
Ahmed Moaz builds Boardit, a free browser game site.