So you want to learn how to draw a starfish?
There are 6 easy steps to follow, kids will enjoy designing their own starfish on paper. Also included is a printable version of this starfish drawing tutorial.
Ideal for art teachers and homeschoolers looking to instruct kids how to draw their own starfish.
Drawing is much more fun when you have a clear lesson to follow. Let’s get drawing!
Materials
- Pencil
- Drawing Paper
- Crayon or Colored Pencils
- Black Marker
- How to Draw a Starfish Printable PDF (see bottom of lesson)
In this lesson, we will start with a new piece of paper and learn how to draw a starfish in no time. It is best to observe the shape and size of each of the drawn parts of the starfish.
Time Needed: 20 minutes
Draw A Star Shape
In the middle of the page, draw a large star shape with rounded points. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just do your best.
Round The Corners
Use curved lines to round out the corners where the points meet. Erase the corners that were there so that only the rounded ones are shown.
Add Detail Lines
Lightly draw in these detail lines. In the middle of your star, draw a circle with a smaller star shape inside made of curved lines. Have two curved lines go from the outside of this circle to each of the five points. Add five more curved lines that go to the curved corners.
Add Circles To The Middle
In the middle of the smaller star shape, draw six small circles. These are going to be the little “spikes” that starfish have.
Add More Small Circles
Draw more small circles in a straight line going from the middle circle to each point of the star.
Color It In
Use different shades of orange and red-orange to color in the starfish.
How to Draw a Starfish PDF Download
Click the link below to view or download this drawing lesson. The PDF is a printable drawing lesson for How to Draw a Starfish. The last page of the downloadable PDF includes a coloring book page with just the outlines and an extension exercise for prompting kids to get creative!
Preview How to Draw a Starfish Drawing PDFDownload PDF
Amazing Facts about Starfish for Kids
Starfish come in a wide range of colors and sizes, but the most common ones are red, orange, yellow or purple. Their colors help them blend into their environment. This is one of their ways they hide from predators that are trying to eat them. What color did you draw your starfish?
Starfish can regenerate any of their multiple arms. Because a starfish can regrow its arms they are able to get away from predators. How do they do this? They can let a fish that’s trying to eat them take away only their arm allowing the starfish to survive. They can grow back that missing arm! How cool is that?
I wonder if a starfish’s parents even bother to warn them to “be careful” when they go out to play with their friends?!!!
When you think of a starfish, you think of the five-limbed species. This is actually a common misconception as there are many species that have more than five arms. For example, the sun star has 40 arms! The next time your mother asks you to carry in some groceries, think how helpful it would be to have 40 arms 🙂
What are Starfish?
The starfish is a marine animal that has no backbone. Animals with no backbones are called invertebrates! The starfish mostly have spiny skin and five arms. Some starfish can grow more than 5 limbs with one species growing around 50 limbs.
This marine animal’s legs are covered in spike shaped organs and suction cups that help it maneuver the sea floor. Their spiky bodies often protect them from becoming a predator’s next meal.
Starfish are known to be one of the oldest species on Earth! Remains discovered from this marine animal date back to the Ordovician period. This period was four hundred and fifty million years ago! Imagine how long ago that was?
The Stars of the Sea
Chocolate Chip Sea Star
This starfish uses the spikes on its body to fend off predators. Shrimp, tiny brittle stars, and small fish actually benefit from the protection the starfish offers! Today, humans are the largest threat to this marine animal.
Royal Sea Star
The Royal Sea Star gets its name from the purple and gold color that is closely related to royalty. This sea star lives 700 feet deep in the ocean. It can swallow its prey whole as opposed to other stars who digest their prey from the outside.
Pacific Blood Star
The Pacific Blood Star is a smaller species of starfish. They are commonly found in the Pacific Coast of North America and a thousand feet below the surface of the sea is a slender species that feeds on bacteria and sponges.
Fun Facts on Starfish
Sea stars are known to regrow their limbs. The largest known starfish, the Sunflower Starfish is 40 inches in length and weighs around 11 pounds! The starfish is the only animal that can turn its stomach inside out. They feed by extending their stomachs outside their bodies and release enzymes that help digest the edible parts of their prey.
