Which Animals Would Your Family Members Be?

Many of us have been spending quite a lot of time with our families lately. This is a very simple and silly activity to do together that can lead to better understanding of each family member's perspective of dynamics in the family and help adults to see how our children or partner experience daily life with us.

Materials can be as varied as you'd like, but only paper and something to write with are needed.

Invite each person to draw a picture of your family doing something that you often do together but draw each human as an animal. You could also use plants, utensils, foods, furniture, vehicles, really anything you can think of.

Invite each person to share their artwork and tell the story about it. Younger children might be interested in acting their scene out while older kids might appreciate the opportunity to share their feelings about family life in an indirect way. Be curious about the artwork and about each person's creative process.

Some questions you might want to ask. What is the family doing together? Why did you choose the animals you did to represent each family member? What do you have in common with the animal representing yourself? Does any one part catch your attention? Do you notice something that feels like a metaphor for real life?

Remember that only the artist can interpret their own art so if you're curious if there might be more meaning inside the art, ask the artist. It's surprising how many times we think we know what someone (especially someone we know very well) is trying to say and it turns out to be something totally different. You might also want to ask about where they started drawing or if they have a favourite part of the picture or a part that feels uncomfortable for them.

Notice any patterns throughout all the pictures. Is one person portrayed as the same animal in more than one picture? What are the roles like in the family? Is there room to experiment with this? Does everyone agree on the type of animal each person is? Can you relate to the ways your family has represented you?

You could take the conversation further by asking each family member to give the others a theme song that they think represents them or you might want to create a collaborative family picture by inviting each person to draw themselves as the animal and in the family activity or situation that they feel they relate to best.