To learn how to draw a dinosaur, start with a big oval for the body, add a long neck with a round head, and a long tail that ends in a point. Then draw four thick legs, a few spots and toenails, and finish with a happy face.
This easy dinosaur drawing is a friendly long-neck dinosaur, like a brontosaurus, made from ovals and curves. Kids from about age 4 can follow it. The free PDF has the step sheet, a tracing page, a practice grid and a coloring page.
What’s in the free PDF
- Step-by-step sheet with 6 numbered steps; new lines are black, earlier lines are grey
- Tracing page with a large dinosaur in light grey to trace over
- Practice sheet with a small reference and two boxes with a light grid
- Coloring page with the finished dinosaur in bold outlines
How to draw a dinosaur step by step
- Body. Draw a big oval in the middle of the paper, wider than it is tall.
- Neck and head. At the top left of the body, draw two long curved lines going up for the neck, and a round head at the top.
- Tail. On the right side of the body, draw two lines that get closer together and meet in a point.
- Legs. Under the body, draw four thick legs like short tree trunks. The two back legs are a little shorter and partly hidden.
- Spots and toenails. Draw a few ovals of different sizes on the back, and two small curved toenails on each front foot.
- Face. Draw an eye with a dark pupil, a dot for the nostril, a curved smile and an oval cheek.
The long neck and long tail are what make it a dinosaur. If yours looks like a turtle, make the neck and tail longer.
Easy dinosaur drawing: common mistakes and fixes
- The neck is too short. Make it at least as long as the body is tall.
- The head is huge. A long-neck dinosaur has a small head; keep it about a quarter of the body size.
- The legs are thin. Dinosaur legs are thick and straight, like pillars.
- The tail is stubby. Let the tail stretch out as long as the body.
Trace, practice, then color
Trace it first
If drawing freehand feels hard, start with the tracing page. Go over the grey lines with a pencil, pressing lightly, and you learn the shapes and their order without worrying about mistakes. Then try again on the practice sheet.
Practice on the grid
The practice sheet has a small finished dinosaur for reference and two boxes with a faint grid. Count how many squares wide and tall the reference is, then draw your dinosaur the same way. The grid keeps the parts the right size next to each other.
Color the finished drawing
Dinosaurs can be any color: green with darker green spots, blue with purple spots or orange with yellow spots. Color the cheek pink and leave a white dot in the eye.
Dinosaur drawing tips for kids
- Add triangle spikes along the back to make a stegosaurus-style dinosaur.
- Draw a volcano, palm trees and a big sun in the background.
- Draw a baby dinosaur hatching from an egg next to the big one.
- Make a dino family: a big one, a medium one and a tiny one in a row.
Download the pages one by one
Prefer a single page? Click a link to open the full-size image, then print it or save it. The PDF with all pages and a cover is in the download box.
- How to draw a dinosaur: step-by-step sheet (PNG)
- a Dinosaur tracing page (PNG)
- a Dinosaur practice sheet with grid (PNG)
- a Dinosaur coloring page (PNG)
More to draw: how to draw a dragon, how to draw an elephant, 45 cute animal drawings and funny things to draw.
FAQ
What is the easiest dinosaur to draw?
A long-neck dinosaur is the easiest: an oval body, a long neck with a small round head, a pointy tail and four thick legs.
How do you draw a cute dinosaur?
Give it a round head, a big eye with a dark pupil, a small smile and a rosy cheek. Spots on the back add fun without making it hard.
How do you draw a dinosaur for kids?
Use simple shapes: an oval for the body, curves for the neck and tail and rectangles for the legs. The tracing page helps younger kids learn the shapes first.
What age is this dinosaur drawing for?
Kids from about age 4 can draw it with the tracing page, and kids from about 6 can draw it freehand from the step sheet.
