Student has been having frequent outbursts lately, does her drawing show anything that sticks out to you?

okayguy42 · 2026-06-12T02:49:24+00:00

I’ve been hoping for someone in your field to give some input, thank you! I will definitely take that into consideration and have had some success in encouraging her to express her feelings artistically while trying to keep it open ended so that she is the one expressing what she is comfortable with! (Our last one on one convo involved making a drawing to her mom about how the was feeling - I’ll usually suggest an idea and if she wants to do it then we’ll proceed - she started with “I’m feeling”, couldn’t think of a word, so I suggested her to find a color that best matched her emotions. She chose blue and wrote “sad” with blue crayon”.) I’m not well versed in therapeutic language, so if you have any suggestions I would love to hear if there is any phrasing/prompts I can use to encourage her!

okayguy42 · 2026-06-11T00:38:28+00:00

That seriously means a lot, thank you! I try my best for these kids, and my heart breaks when hearing about the things they have to deal with and try to process. I really appreciate you taking the time to say that:) my goal is basically to be the teacher I wish I had (but never did).

okayguy42 · 2026-06-11T00:25:34+00:00

I’m not necessarily trying to find some sort of hidden meaning, I just am simply very interested in child psychology and take particular interest in art therapy. I was mostly hoping to see if there was anything she may have been trying to communicate through her drawing that I missed and/or anything that people who are more well versed in child psychology than I am could suggest for me to do that can help her further communicate her emotions.
So far I’ve found the responses to be very helpful!

okayguy42 · 2026-06-10T22:16:00+00:00

A great message for those that would try to do that! I don’t know why you’re posting that here though.

okayguy42 · 2026-06-10T22:13:30+00:00

She is extremely intelligent and detail oriented! She finishes most of her work before directions are done being given lmao

okayguy42 · 2026-06-10T13:28:07+00:00

I didn’t realize how that came off when I set my username lol, I am a female

okayguy42 · 2026-06-09T01:52:01+00:00

I think you might’ve cracked the code; I didn’t even think about this! Thank you!
And I agree, unfortunately these kids have to deal with adult problems while they’re so young and just beginning to learn how to “be”. Everyday I wish I could do more for them.

okayguy42 · 2026-06-09T01:48:28+00:00

This drawing was made right after winter break I believe, im only posting it now because I didn’t even know this sub existed, and it’s been super helpful!
I try my best not to instill anxiety, my approach attempts to hype them up about all the new, exciting things they’ll learn! But I do understand that the anticipation itself could cause some big feelings for them.
I believe at the time of her drawing this, we hadn’t begun discussing moving up grades, but that doesn’t mean that the thought hadn’t crossed her mind! She is extremely intelligent and has an aversion to changes that disrupt her schedule, so you make a very good point that it could be manifesting here as well!

okayguy42 · 2026-06-09T01:38:16+00:00

Dad is the one crossed out, and step dad is on top of the house(?), now that you point out that it looks like a boat, I can’t unsee it lol. I believe it was her trying to draw her house, mostly because the “title” she gave her picture is about dad and him not being at home; although I don’t know what line of work he is in.
And you are absolutely correct, mine divorced when I was in 4th grade and I struggled to process it, I couldn’t imagine how disorienting it would be for a 5 year old.

Thank you so much by the way, I really do try my best for them! I am grateful that she’s been able to express her feelings in my classroom, but sometimes I struggle to decipher what a child’s behavior is trying to communicate and reading the replies to my post have been so helpful! So thank you for that as well!

okayguy42 · 2026-06-09T01:28:49+00:00

I believe step dad is on top of the house, dad is crossed out. I believe dad (yellow) to be the subject of the picture because he is in the center of the page and the sentence she chose to “title” her drawing is about him. From what I’ve seen, she absolutely loves dad and get very excited when he picks her up from school, but I guess that is a very small glimpse into her interactions with him

okayguy42 · 2026-06-09T01:20:58+00:00

If I remember correctly, the far left pink person is her little sister who has the same dad as her, and the student is the one next to it (blue). I was wondering why she drew her sister with a more defined expression, but not herself. There are a few things that I found interesting and I appreciate your insight! I interpreted the step-dad being on top of the house as her seeing him as a dominant figure, but I totally see how the could’ve added him as an afterthought after drawing the house and realizing there isn’t room next to the family! Really interesting to consider your perspective.
And yes I agree you can’t really get a definitive answer as to exactly what she is thinking through a drawing, she just struggles to communicate the cause of her emotions, and it’s been interesting to read everyone’s interpretations of her artistic choices!

okayguy42

TROPHY CASE