A Parent's Guide to The Symbol-Making Stage
Somewhere between messy scribbles and recognizable pictures, most children pass through what's often called the symbol-making stage — a fascinating point where marks start to stand for real things, even if only the child knows what they represent at first. Here's what to expect.
What Happens During Symbol-Making
In this stage, a circle might become a face, a few short lines might become legs, and a scribble in the corner might be "the dog." The drawings themselves may not look realistic yet, but the intention behind them has shifted — your child is now using marks to represent ideas, not just making marks for their own sake.
Why This Shift Matters
Symbol-making is often considered an important step in creative and cognitive development, since it shows a child connecting a physical mark with a mental idea. This kind of symbolic thinking may also relate to other emerging skills, like early writing, though every child's path looks a little different.
What This Stage Often Looks Like Day to Day
Don't be surprised if the same drawing is "a cat" one moment and "a house" the next — meaning can shift freely at this stage, and that's completely normal. Basic shapes like circles and lines are usually the main building blocks, often before your child can reliably draw more complex forms.
A Simple Activity to Try
Ask your child to tell you about their drawing as they go, and jot down what they say (with their permission) next to the picture. This keeps a record of the story behind the symbols, which can be more meaningful than the image alone — and shows your child their words and ideas matter.
Tips for Parents and Teachers
- Ask open questions like "tell me about this" instead of guessing what a drawing shows.
- Avoid correcting a drawing to look more realistic — symbolic representation is the goal at this stage.
- Offer a variety of drawing tools to encourage experimenting with different marks.
- Expect meanings to change, even within the same drawing session.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is symbol-making different from scribbling?
In the earlier scribbling stage, marks usually don't represent anything specific. During symbol-making, a child begins intentionally using shapes and lines to stand for real things, even if the result doesn't look realistic.
What comes after the symbol-making stage?
Many children eventually move into what's called the pictorial stage, where drawings become more detailed and recognizable — though the timing varies widely.
My child's symbols look nothing like what they describe. Is that normal?
Yes, completely. At this stage, the connection between a mark and its meaning exists mainly in your child's mind, and that's a normal and valuable part of development.
Conclusion
Watching a child's marks begin to carry meaning is one of the more exciting parts of early drawing development. Stay curious, ask about the stories behind the shapes, and let this stage unfold at its own pace.