This one asks for a little more patience: overlapping shapes, pattern and detail. It is a calm, focused few minutes, and the finished drawing looks like real art.
Before you start: a pencil, an eraser, a sheet of paper and something to colour with.
Draw lightly at first. Dark lines come at the end, once the shapes look right.
Step-by-step: how to draw a train
Step 1. Engine body
Draw the engine body.
Step 2. Cab
Add the back cab.
Step 3. Boiler front
Draw the front circle and cowcatcher.
Step 4. Smokestack
Add the smokestack.
Step 5. Big wheels
Draw the main wheels.
Step 6. Connecting rod
Add the wheel rod.
Step 7. Front light
Add the front lamp.
Step 8. Railway track
Draw the track lines.
Step 9. First mountain
Add the big mountain shape.
Step 10. Second mountain
Add the back mountain.
Step 11. Cloud smoke
Add smoke puffs.
Step 12. Pine trees
Add two pine trees.
Step 13. Train details
Add lines and rivets.
Step 14. Create
Make the train scene yours.
The pink line is the new part in each step.
Make it theirs
- Add a background that tells a story. Where is it?
- Give it a name and write it underneath.
- Try it again tomorrow from memory.
- Colour last. There is no wrong colour for a train.
Teaching it with the projector
The projector version draws each step slowly on the board, pauses while students copy it, then checks in before the next step. Nobody has to talk, so you are free to walk around and help.
Quick Fix: 8 steps, about 5 minutes. Good for a brain break or the last few minutes before recess. Full Focus: all 14 steps, about 7 minutes, with the extra detail.
Open Mountain Train on the projector → It works on any classroom screen. No accounts, no student names, no ads.
Curriculum connections
Visual arts: the elements of design (line, shape, pattern and texture) and creating art for a purpose. Language: listening to and following multi-step directions. Directed drawing also builds fine motor control and focus.