Troop Care Packages: Children's Drawings

In preparation for an increased effort to support our troops (more on that soon), I am enlisting the help of a small army of my own: the kids in our neighborhood, led by their drill sergeant, my daughter. Their mission: to draw five hundred pictures for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their chances of failure?

That depends upon you...

They need your help. No, not money--they are paid quite well in milk and cookies--they need your ideas. These kids are absolute machines when it comes to drawing pictures. Give them a stack of paper and some felt pens, and they are off.

But, what hinders their mission is coming up with ideas. They are kids, so they don't really know what pictures would be most enjoyed by an adult soldier. That's where you come in.

You are their commanding officers. Your mission: in the comments below, post simple ideas for drawings that 8 to 10 year olds could read and immediately start drawing, and include any accompanying text that might go along with it.

An example...
Subject: Draw a picture of...
Comment: you walking into your school, with the words "Thank you for keeping America safe so I can go to school."

Come on everyone! We need 500 ideas!

(Next in this series: ideas for short stories!)

•  Tips and Recs...

  for our troops! (And our young artists!)

  ~Doc~

  by EquationDoc on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:36:30 PM PDT

  •  thank you for doing this

    Earlier today I posted a diary saying 5 soldiers died on Thursday.  We need to keep them front and center in our postings at Daily Kos.  Your project does that.  Many thousand thanks.

    by bigforkgirl on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:18:17 PM PDT

    •  I just saw your diary...

      Thank you for posting it, as you say, it's easy to lose track of exactly what is going on in Iraq and Afghanistan with the primary occupying so much of our attention.

      All of these ideas will soon start getting translated into drawings that will go inside of care packages being sent to our troops by incredible people doing what they can to let our troops know how much we appreciate their service.

      We must not rest until all of our men and women in uniform have been brought home, and are out of harm's way.

      ~Doc~

      by EquationDoc on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 06:52:46 PM PDT

•  How About These

  1. A drawing of a US solider reading to a young Iraqi child.

  2. Several US soldiers playing soccer with some Iraqi children.

  3. And maybe best of all a drawing of the children themselves drawing the pictures.

  by webranding on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:39:22 PM PDT

•  Draw a picture of...

  kids playing sports (especially baseball since it's baseball season)
  animals at the zoo
  flowers (might not be too many of those in Iraq/Afghanistan)
  things they like to eat (ice cream, spaghetti, hamburgers)

  Just a few ideas... :)

  by Cali Scribe on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:44:14 PM PDT

  •  I like the idea of flowers

    spring flowers, because by the time they get them it will be hot and summer.  Rain, and green things would be good.  A willow tree, or a tree with a tire swing on it.  

    I spent a summer in Kurdistan (the Turkish part) on the Euphrates River.  The thing I wanted to see when I was there, and the thing that meant the most to me when I left, was plants with colour -- particularly bright red and yellow flowers.  Flowers brought tears to my eyes.  The area of northern Iraq, particularly, is just dry, monotonous, tan, just dusty.  

    by annetteboardman on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:41:31 PM PDT

•  Couple of ideas

  Soldier attending a baseball game
  Soldier barbecuing in his/her backyard ( don't forget to make some of the soldiers female)
  Soldier playing "Guitar Hero"
  Soldier on a skateboard
  Soldier on a surfboard

  by Vita Brevis on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:47:16 PM PDT

•  A picture of children hugging a soldier . . .

  I know that when I'm away from my kids, I really miss their big squeeze-hugs.  I can't imagine what it would be like to have to be away from them on a long deployment in Iraq.

  Thanks for doing this project!

  by Rick in Oz on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:47:33 PM PDT

•  You could ask them to draw..

  ...pictures of their pets, their classrooms, if they have taken field trips to places like the zoo, a museum, swimming outings at the beach, playing in the playground.
   Regular stuff- you know, just what the troops over there miss over here.

  by drchelo on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:48:38 PM PDT

•  pictures of "ordinary" US places, activities

  baseball games, football games, festivals, kite flying, cats & dogs, etc.

  anything to remind them of home.

  by catchaz on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:50:03 PM PDT

•  draw a person

  voting for a DEMOCRAT, (not identified as Obama or Clinton) that will get them out of this war and home.

  We will convince our elders to vote for EITHER candidate if it means bringing you home rather than having a tantrum because their candidate is not the one.

  And I bet these kids know how unproductive tantrums can be.

  ALSO,
  Have them draw scenes of iconic US vistas: grand canyon, Black Hills, Empire State Building, Golden Gate Bridge, National Parks (Arches, Zion, Everglades), wheat fields, corn fields, baseball fields, scenes from home.

  by educonfidential on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:51:06 PM PDT

  •  As much as this picture may be appealing . . .

    I wouldn't ask my kids to draw it.  

    Bear in mind that when it's bedtime in our house, our kids run upstairs to put their "Obamas" on.  They have no doubt where I stand in this race.

    But with an issue like war, I think it may not be helpful to frame it in such a partisan way for children.  To blame Republicans (i.e., all Republicans) fosters the kind of us/them thinking that gets us into war after war.

    This picture gives kids a chance to express something higher than our base tribal instinct.  And your wonderful suggestions after the "ALSO" express that really well.

    by Rick in Oz on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:15:30 PM PDT

    •  I know, I know

      I was just slipping the message in for the "elders"....
      hmmm too subtle and probably not right for your awesome idea.
      But, consider the landscapes, eh?

      by educonfidential on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:22:33 PM PDT

•  don't forget to make some of the soldiers female

  i hope Vita Brevis doesn't mind me restating that great reminder!

  by catchaz on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:51:49 PM PDT

  •  Not at all!!!

    and if I remember correctly when my son was younger, he liked to draw water scenes for some reason.

    Oceans
    Lakes
    Pools
    Boats
    Fish
    Aquariums

    by Vita Brevis on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 03:56:56 PM PDT

•  kids drawings:

  my daughter almost exclusively draws princesses.

  she will draw other scenes if she can use stickers to supplement them picture.

  rainbows.
  trees and flowers.
  draw their favorite things
  draw families
  hmmm.

  by jlms qkw on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:07:03 PM PDT

•  the children's daily lives

  Soldiers want to hear about "normal".  So pictures of Little League games, report cards, what's happening at recess, what I do at the park, etc. along with a Thank you--that's what soldiers love.

  by bigforkgirl on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:16:29 PM PDT

•  Draw this:

  A single tree with lots of leaves  (if you are motivated, add a swing hanging from a branch)

  A forest

  A mountain

  A boat

  Someone diving off a diving board into a pool

  The Golden Gate Bridge

  Mt Rushmore

  Old Faithful geyser

  A cat  (cats are always fresh)

  A dog (I have heard that a few people may prefer dogs to cats)

  A sports car

  Somebody golfing.

  Some hip movie star/ musician (I couldn't even begin to guess who that might be so I will leave it up to the hipsters.  I suggest drawing a specific scene from a popular movie.  Be sure that some of these stars are hunky males for the ladies to enjoy.)

  Copy the cover of a famous record album  (CD cover?  Whatever they call them things these days)

  Copy a famous painting, use lots of bright colors.  It doesn't matter how simplified it is, someone will pick it out of the pile.

  Draw a picture of a TV set with a scene from a popular tv show in the screen.

  A duck

  Something really silly (a school shaped like an ice cream cone, a dog driving a car, people wearing underwear on their head (HI BiPM!), ... something that makes you laugh just to think about it.

  (IS that enough to get started with?  Not 500, but I tried.)

  by WI Deadhead on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 04:50:51 PM PDT

•  Normal life

  I understand that you (think they) need ideas but encourage them to be authentic.  Pictures of normal life at home and at school.  Have them think ahead to vacation time or back to a trip they've enjoyed.  Anything from a kid's heart will touch a lonely soldier!

  by luckylizard on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 05:02:13 PM PDT

•  also...

  The soldiers might like to see drawings of the children's houses and of the street or the neighborhood.  

  Anything green or colorful would be a great change from the beige which the soldiers see all around them....rainbows,  flowers, a clothesline, etc.

  Lots of colorful clothes would also be a welcome change from Army drab!   Show the soldiers the latest colors and styles that the kids are wearing.

  Ordinary items either from their homes or from their classrooms.....clocks,  pencils,  furniture, curtains, rugs, dishes,  telephones, games, etc.

  People....teachers, cafeteria helpers, neighbors, policemen, kids they play with, ministers or priests, doctors, etc.

  What a great project!!   Thanks so much for doing this!!!!

  by worriedgranny on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 05:19:25 PM PDT

•  Hsvr the kids draw maps of all the states and

  their capitals... Soldiers love getting pictures of where they are from.

  by sscott1958 on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 05:35:33 PM PDT

  •  Have not Hsrv...geesh....

    by sscott1958 on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 05:36:59 PM PDT

•  Oh goodness!

  I expected half a dozen suggestions!

  This is fantastic!

  Thank you all so much!

  I'm going to get the kids started first thing in the morning!

  ~Doc~

  by EquationDoc on Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 06:46:11 PM PDT