How to Draw an Owl
This owl drawing starts from one big egg shape. Everything else is built around it: the face and chest sit inside the egg, the wings overlap its sides, and two feet hold on to a branch underneath.
What each box adds
Nine boxes fill page 1. Seven of them are numbered steps, and in each one the new lines are orange while everything from earlier boxes stays black. Two pointy ear tufts come after the egg, then a face mask around two big round eyes, and step four brings a little beak and a round chest with feather bumps. Two small wings follow, then a branch with a leaf, and in the last step two feet grip the branch. Box eight is the finished owl, and box nine is an empty dashed frame for your child’s own try.
A bigger owl on page 2
The practice page gives more room. A small finished owl and the seven instructions run along the top, and a large box labeled Draw yours here takes up the rest. On screen, an animation of about 18 seconds draws the owl line by line, and the dashed outline of the owl and branch is there to trace once before drawing freehand.
Ages and printing
The owl is aimed at ages 6 to 8. Every part is an oval, a circle, a triangle or a gentle curve, so a younger child can keep up with an adult drawing beside them. Turn off fit to page when you print the A4 or Letter file: at 100 percent the step captions stay big enough to read.
Draw an owl in 7 steps
New lines in each step are orange. Where a new part covers an earlier line, that bit turns dashed gray: rub it out.
Draw a big egg shape for the owl's body.
Add two pointy ear tufts on top.
Draw a face mask with two big round eyes.
Add a little beak and a round chest with feather bumps.
Draw two small wings on the sides.
Draw a branch under the owl with a leaf.
Finish with two feet holding on to the branch.
Tips to make your owl drawing easy
- Sketch the egg shape lightly, since the face and chest sit inside it and the wings overlap its sides.
- Keep the two ear tufts the same height so the owl does not look tilted.
- Draw the outer eye circles first and add the dark pupils last.
- Let the branch run past both sides of the owl so the feet have something to hold.
- Sit beside your child and draw your own owl at the same pace.
- When the pencil drawing is done, go over it in marker and color it in.
Owl outline to print and trace
Print the finished outline on its own: trace over it with a pencil to learn the shapes, or use the dashed tracing sheet for younger kids who are still building pencil control. Both fit A4 and US Letter.
Color your owl
Finished drawing? Print one of our 2 owl coloring pages to color the same character in 2 difficulty levels, or color your own drawing with the step sheet beside you.
More owl activities
Frequently asked questions
What keeps the owl from looking tilted?
Keeping the two ear tufts at the same height. They are the second step, drawn right after the egg shape, so they can be checked against each other before the face goes on.
How long should the branch be?
Long enough to run past both sides of the owl, so the two feet have something to hold. It goes in with its leaf just before the feet, which grip it in the last step.
Why are some lines orange?
In each step only the new lines are orange, and the lines from earlier boxes stay black, so a child can see at a glance what to add. The A4 and the US Letter file hold the same step sheet and practice page.
Is there a way to trace the owl first?
Yes. A dashed gray outline of the whole owl and branch is shown on this page for tracing. Going over it once can help a child learn the shapes before drawing them freehand.
About this printable
- Made with AI assistance (vector drawing authored by a language model) and checked by automated tests and an AI reviewer.
- Checked by automated tests and an AI reviewer on 22 Oct 2026.
- Free for personal and single-classroom use. See the license. Read the license · How these are made · Report a problem.
- Vector PDF, 2 pages, 186×254 mm art box — prints edge-safe on A4 and US Letter.
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