Draw a Picture Strategy

For Elementary Students

Why Draw a Picture?

Sometimes word problems are hard to understand just by reading. When you draw a picture, you can see what's happening!

Think about it like this: Your brain understands pictures faster than words. Drawing turns confusing words into a clear picture!

When to Draw a Picture

Use this strategy when:

• The problem talks about objects you can draw
• You need to count or group things
• The problem describes a scene or situation
• You're feeling stuck and don't know where to start

How to Draw a Picture

Step 1: Read the problem carefully

Step 2: Draw simple shapes to represent the objects (don't worry about making it perfect!)

Step 3: Use your picture to count, add, subtract, or solve

Step 4: Write the answer

Example 1: Counting Objects

Problem: "There are 3 dogs in the park. Each dog has 4 legs. How many legs total?"

Draw it:

Dog 1: 🐕 (4 legs)
Dog 2: 🐕 (4 legs)
Dog 3: 🐕 (4 legs)

Or draw stick legs:

Dog 1: | | | |
Dog 2: | | | |
Dog 3: | | | |

Count: 4 + 4 + 4 = 12 legs

Answer: 12 legs total

Example 2: Subtraction

Problem: "Sara has 8 apples. She gives 3 to her friend. How many apples does Sara have left?"

Draw it:

Sara's apples: 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎

Cross out 3: ✗🍎 ✗🍎 ✗🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎

Count what's left: 5 apples

Answer: 5 apples left

Example 3: Sharing (Division)

Problem: "12 cookies are shared equally among 3 friends. How many cookies does each friend get?"

Draw it:

Friend 1: 🍪 🍪 🍪 🍪
Friend 2: 🍪 🍪 🍪 🍪
Friend 3: 🍪 🍪 🍪 🍪

Count: Each friend gets 4 cookies

Answer: 4 cookies each

For Junior High Students

Types of Diagrams

Different problems need different types of pictures:

Bar Models (Tape Diagrams)

Great for comparing amounts or showing part-whole relationships.

Problem: "Tom has 15 marbles. Lisa has 8 more marbles than Tom. How many does Lisa have?"

Draw:

Tom:   [___15___]
Lisa:  [___15___][_8_]

Lisa = 15 + 8 = 23 marbles

Number Lines

Good for addition, subtraction, and understanding distance.

Problem: "A snail starts at position 3 and moves 7 spaces forward. Where does it end?"

Draw:

  start         end
    ↓            ↓
0 ─── 1 ─── 2 ─── 3 ─── 4 ─── 5 ─── 6 ─── 7 ─── 8 ─── 9 ─── 10
                  →   →   →   →   →   →   →

Answer: Position 10

Arrays

Perfect for multiplication.

Problem: "A garden has 4 rows of flowers. Each row has 6 flowers. How many flowers total?"

Draw:

🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸
🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸
🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸
🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸 🌸

4 rows × 6 flowers = 24 flowers

Venn Diagrams (Preview)

For problems about groups and overlaps.

Problem: "10 students like soccer. 8 like basketball. 5 like both. How many students total?"

Draw:

Soccer: 5 who only like soccer + 5 who like both = 10 total
Basketball: 3 who only like basketball + 5 who like both = 8 total

Total students: 5 + 5 + 3 = 13 students

We will learn more about Venn diagrams later.

Multi-Step Problems

Problem: "Jake has $20. He buys a toy for $7 and a book for $5. How much money is left?"

Draw:

Start: $20
       ├─ Toy: -$7
       └─ Book: -$5

Spent: $7 + $5 = $12
Left: $20 - $12 = $8

Answer: $8 left

Comparing Quantities

Problem: "Anna has 12 stickers. Ben has 7 stickers. How many more does Anna have?"

Draw:

Anna: 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
Ben:  🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Difference (extra): 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Answer: Anna has 5 more stickers

Tips for Good Diagrams

✓ Keep it simple — stick figures and circles work great! ✓ Label your picture — write what each part represents ✓ Use different colors (if you have them) to show different groups ✓ Don't worry about art — your picture just needs to help YOU understand

When Drawing Takes Too Long

For very large numbers, you don't need to draw every single item!

Instead of drawing 50 apples:

• Draw a box and write "50 apples" inside
• Draw 5 apples and write "× 10" to show there are really 50

Symbolize, don't draw everything!

Combining Strategies

You can use drawing along with other strategies:

• Draw a picture to understand the problem
• Then use mental math or an equation to solve

Example: "5 boxes, each with 8 crayons. How many total?"

Draw: 5 boxes (quick sketch) Then multiply: 5 × 8 = 40 crayons

Practice