How to Draw a Penguin (Easy Step-by-Step for Kids)

To draw a penguin, start with a tall egg shape for the body. Draw the face and belly patch inside it, then add the eyes and a small beak. Finish with two flippers, two feet and rosy cheeks.

Finished cartoon penguin with a black body, white face and belly, orange beak and feet and pink cheeks
The finished penguin
Steps
6 easy steps
You need
  • Pencil
  • Eraser
  • Black marker
  • Black, orange, pink and gray crayons

Updated

Teaching this to a class?

Show one step at a time on the board and wait for the class before the next. The directed drawing for kids page explains how to run it.

How to draw a penguin step by step

  1. A tall egg shape, narrower at the top, for the penguin's body

    Step 1 of 6: Draw a tall egg shape for the body, narrower at the top.

  2. A face and belly patch inside the body, shaped like a heart on top and round at the bottom

    Step 2 of 6: Draw the face and belly patch inside the body, with a dip at the top like a heart.

  3. Two round eyes with white shine dots and a small triangle beak

    Step 3 of 6: Add two round eyes and a small triangle beak between them.

  4. A rounded flipper on each side of the penguin's body

    Step 4 of 6: Draw a rounded flipper on each side of the body.

  5. Two wide feet with three rounded toes each and two small round cheeks

    Step 5 of 6: Add two wide feet at the bottom and a small round cheek on each side.

  6. The penguin colored black with a white face and belly, an orange beak and feet and pink cheeks

    Step 6 of 6: Color the body and flippers black, the beak and feet orange and the cheeks pink.

Tips for little artists

  • Tip: Press lightly with the pencil first. Trace the lines you like with the marker, then erase the rest.

  • Tip: Leave the face and belly white. The white paper does the work for you.

  • Tip: Put the eyes far apart and the beak low between them. A wide face looks extra cute.

Make it yours

  • Penguin in a hat

    Add a knit hat with a pom-pom on top of the head and a striped scarf under the beak.

  • Ice skating penguin

    Draw two short blades under the feet and a few curvy lines on the ice behind it.

  • Penguin family

    Draw a big penguin next to a small fluffy chick. Color the chick gray.

Common mistakes and easy fixes

  • The belly patch touches the edge

    Leave a band of body showing all around the belly patch. That black band is what makes it a penguin.

  • The flippers look like arms

    Draw each flipper as a long rounded teardrop. Point the tip down and out, away from the body.

  • The feet float under the body

    Overlap the feet with the bottom of the body. Each foot needs three rounded toes facing forward.

Fun facts about the penguin

  • Emperor penguins are the largest of all penguins. An average emperor penguin stands about 45 inches tall. (Source: National Geographic Education)

  • Emperor penguins can weigh up to 88 pounds. (Source: PBS Nature)

  • The smallest penguin is the little penguin, also called the little blue penguin or fairy penguin. (Source: PBS Nature)

Questions grown-ups ask

How do you draw a cute penguin?

Use a big white face, large eyes with white shine dots and a small beak set low. Pink cheeks and wide orange feet finish the cute look.

How do you draw a penguin easy?

Draw an egg shape, then a heart-topped belly patch inside it. Add eyes, a beak, two flippers and two feet. The 6 steps above follow that order.

How do you draw a penguin step by step?

Start with the body, then the face and belly, the eyes and beak, the flippers and the feet. Color the body black last and keep the belly white.

If your penguin leans a little to one side, that's fine. Call it a waddle. More easy drawings for kids are on the home page.

Step 1 of 6

A tall egg shape, narrower at the top, for the penguin's body
Draw a tall egg shape for the body, narrower at the top.