How to Make a School Drawing (Easy Step-by-Step Guide)

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Artist Mark Weiser shares basic & advanced drawing tips for sketching a school
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A school is fun and super easy to draw! And because it's your drawing, you can make it look however you want: a traditional brown or yellow schoolhouse, or something wild and wacky! But before you can add color and details, you still need a basic outline of the building itself. For that, follow the simple steps below, which include expert tips from artist Mark Weiser, and learn how to draw a schoolhouse.

How to Draw a Basic School Building

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A simple illustration of a schoolhouse with a clock face above the double doors

Artist Mark Weiser says to draw a rectangle for the school building. Add a roof with a small peak on top. Sketch a clock face, a double door, and 12 windows on the front. Add outdoor features like bushes and trees. Finish by coloring the school brown, yellow, or red, the sky blue, and the ground green.

1

Draw a large rectangle with a longer line on the top.

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  1. Use a marker, pen, or pencil to sketch a roughly 6–8 in (15–20 cm) long and 3–4 in (7.6–10.2 cm) tall rectangle on a piece of printer paper. This shape will form the front of your school. When you draw the top horizontal line, extend the ends so they’re slightly (about 1⁄4 in (0.64 cm) to 1⁄2 in (1.3 cm)) longer than the bottom line on each side.[1]
    • Weiser agrees to draw your school as a basic block building to start.[2]
    • Weiser suggests drawing the lines of the building with a ruler to help make them straight. He says, “Later, you can switch to freehand when you are comfortable with your style.”[3]

    Meet the wikiHow Expert

    Mark Weiser is an artist and gallery manager for DKW Art Gallery in Marion, Iowa. The gallery also provides art classes for the community.

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2

Draw two roughly 1 in (2.5 cm)-long slanted lines at the top of the rectangle.

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  1. On the left end of the top line, sketch a roughly 1 in (2.5 cm)-long slant upward and inward toward the center at a 45-degree angle. Then draw another inward-pointing slant to mirror the first one on the other end of the top line. These slants will form the short ends of the school roof![4]
3

Connect two 2 in (5.1 cm) horizontal lines to the slanted lines.

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  1. Start each horizontal line at the top of a slanted line and draw them inward toward the center of the roof. Leave a gap of about 1 in (2.5 cm) between them, so you have somewhere to draw the peak of the school’s roof. Center the gap above the big rectangle.[5]
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4

Draw a triangular shape above the two short horizontal lines.

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  1. Start drawing the sloping sides of the triangle about 1⁄4 in (0.64 cm) to 1⁄2 in (1.3 cm) past both sides of the gap you created in the previous step—you’re making a triangle that doesn’t have a complete base. Connect the sloping sides to form the triangle’s point, leaving off the bottom line of the triangle.[6]
    • This triangular shape will become the school’s roof.
5

Draw a smaller triangle directly under the triangular shape.

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  1. Start the small triangle’s sloping lines at the ends of the horizontal lines from step 3. Connect them at the top to make a peak. It should look like the smaller triangle is nested inside the larger one. Once again, avoid drawing the bottom line of this triangle for now.[7]
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6

Draw two short vertical lines from the horizontal lines to the big rectangle.

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  1. Connect the two short horizontal lines to the top line of the big rectangle. With these simple strokes of your marker, you'll have made a facade for the school clock.[8]
7

Draw a smaller rectangle under the top line of the big rectangle.

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  1. Start drawing the two short ends of the smaller rectangle about 2–3 in (5.1–7.6 cm) inward from either end of the big rectangle. Connect the ends with a long bottom line. The top line of the big rectangle should also be the top line of the small rectangle. You've just made the sign where you'll write "SCHOOL."[9]
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8

Draw two vertical lines from the small rectangle to the bottom of the big one.

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  1. Begin each long line at the bottom line of the small rectangle. Draw them all the way down to connect to the bottom line of the big rectangle. These lines will form the frame for the school doors.[10]
9

Draw the front doors.

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  1. Sketch a roughly 2 in (5.1 cm) square between the two long vertical lines you drew in the previous step. The bottom of the square should also be the bottom of the big rectangle. Next, draw a line down the middle of the square and two small circles on either side of the line. You now have double doors for the school entrance![11]
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10

Draw the windows.

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  1. Sketch two rows of three small, upright rectangles on either side of the door. Draw the rows on top of one another, so they line up neatly. For the finishing touch, draw a big plus sign ("+") in each window to form window panes.[12]
    • Tip: Instead of 12 small windows, you can draw 6 big windows, or 4 extra-large ones. It's up to you how many windows you want your school to have!
11

Draw a circular clock face underneath the smaller triangle.

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  1. Sketch a circle big enough to fit snugly in the space underneath the apex of the smaller triangle. You can add numbers to the inside of the circle if you want. But the simplest way to finish the clock face is to draw a big "L," with the point where the two lines of the "L" intersect in the center of the circle. The “L” creates the illusion of the big hand and little hand of a clock.[13]
    • If you’re having trouble drawing the school, Weiser highly recommends watching a video tutorial or getting an in-person lesson from a teacher. He says these are the best ways to learn how to draw and improve your skills.[14]
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12

Write “SCHOOL” in the rectangle above the door.

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  1. Write the letters big enough to fill the small rectangle above the double doors. You can also use smaller letters to fit the name of your school in the rectangle, if you want! [15]
    • As a more advanced option, Weiser suggests adding perspective to your drawing. He explains that you can do this 2 different ways:[16]
      • 1-point perspective: Weiser says, “Imagine a street going beside the school and disappearing over a hill. Where it disappears over the hill is your vanishing point… Your vanishing point is going to control all your lines on your simple box or simple building. The doors, the windows, the architectural lines, the sidewalks, everything will react to your vanishing point.”[17]
      • 2-point perspective: Weiser says, “What if you stand at the corner across from the school and see one street going to the right at an angle and one to the left at an angle? You now have a 2-point perspective and 2 vanishing points.”[18]
    • If you add perspective, Weiser says to study a building in real life. He notes that “you can see the front of a building might be a full rectangle, but the side, as it gets further away, also gets smaller. It is an optical illusion that you are aware of, but nonetheless, you are aware that the wall is the same size all the way down and is not getting smaller.”[19]
13

Color the school.

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  1. Bring your school to life by coloring it with crayons, colored pencils, colored markers, or whatever other coloring medium you prefer! Many schools are brown, but you can choose any color. For example, you could color the school walls yellow to make them look bright and happy. Consider coloring the windows blue to reflect the sky outside and the roof orange or red. You can color the doors brown or match them to the roof. Leave the clock face and the school sign white, or use a color that contrasts with the school walls and roof to stand out!
    • Tip: If you use colored markers, put a second piece of paper underneath your drawing in case the color bleeds through.
    • As a more advanced option, Weiser recommends adding a light source to your drawing to give it more dimension. He notes that light can come from multiple sources, like the sun, interior lights, and exterior lights. So, you might want to hold off on this until you get other advanced techniques, like perspective, down.[20]
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14

Sketch bushes, trees, and a path leading to the door (optional).

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  1. Draw big popcorn shapes on the ground on either side of the schoolhouse, and color them green to make bushes. To make a tree, sketch two 3–5 in (7.6–12.7 cm) long vertical lines starting from the "ground," then connect them with a popcorn shape at the top. Color the top green to represent the leaves and the space between the vertical lines brown for the trunk. To make a path, draw two lines from the bottom of the door down toward the bottom of your paper, then color it a light shade, like sandy yellow, or leave it white.
    • To get more inspiration for your school, Weiser suggests flipping through architecture books or simply studying a school in real life. He says to pay attention to all of the details, like the gutters, lettering over the door, other special icons, and window ledges.[21]
15

Color in the grass, sky, and any remaining white space.

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  1. Use green for the ground in front of and to either side of the school to give the illusion of grass. Color the space behind and above the school blue to make it look like the sky. If you want to add white clouds, draw a few puffy shapes in the sky first, then color the surrounding area blue.
    • Remember, this is your drawing, so you can color it however you want! If you’re feeling a purple sky and an orange ground, go for it! Make your school drawing match the school in your imagination.
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References

  1. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=YtNt-aKSqri3paMD&t=5
  2. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  3. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  4. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=bYQKE-qNc-43AbTY&t=39
  5. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=xqgV-tNceXLsq_je&t=43
  6. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=3FHXV4Wdnn27nII-&t=60
  7. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=q8N0Fjjx6w5tqlYi&t=77
  8. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=sJWMY1B4364m5z1F&t=83
  9. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=p6k0zRKYwYmfNf43&t=89
  1. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=81QhAiPhipMOiwn7&t=107
  2. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=OWvzvmpXO-3WEwpT&t=135
  3. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=SzXbXh4KUJoRCfyc&t=157
  4. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=fCdabNztjOnoOiJv&t=246
  5. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  6. ↑ https://youtu.be/JpL2XDCkH20?si=4II4-Gd4kD1qsrAc&t=274
  7. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  8. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  9. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  10. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  11. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview
  12. ↑ Mark Weiser. Artist. Expert Interview

About This Article

Mark Weiser
Co-authored by:
Mark Weiser
Artist
This article was co-authored by Mark Weiser and by wikiHow staff writer, Elaine Heredia, BA. Mark Weiser is an Artist and Gallery Manager for DKW Art Gallery based in Marion, Iowa. He and his wife Deb manage the gallery, which boasts a variety of art, including paintings, ceramics, and photography. The gallery also provides art classes for the community, hosts shows, and runs events that build awareness of regional artists of all ages. Mark has also owned and operated art galleries in Florida and Georgia. He creates carved slate and wood pieces inspired by Irish and Celtic art, featuring the Gaelic language done in the ancient Ogham alphabet. Some of Mark's previous clients include CNN, Pinnacle Bank, and Collins Aerospace. He received a BS in Business Administration with minors in Education and Psychology from Emporia State University. This article has been viewed 16,729 times.
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Updated: December 3, 2025
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