Drawing Faces: Lips, Noses, and Expressions

Materials Needed

• Sketchpad or drawing paper
• Pencils: HB, 2B, and 4B if available
• Eraser and pencil sharpener
• Ruler or straight edge
• Acrylic markers
• Paper towel or scrap paper for testing markers
• Face-drawing tutorials, printed references, or an instructor demonstration
• Optional: colored pencils, black fineliner, and a desk lamp

Lesson Overview

Age: 11 years

Suggested time: 60–75 minutes

Big idea: Artists can draw realistic faces by noticing simple shapes, proportions, light, shadow, and expression.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson, the learner will be able to:

• Break a nose and a pair of lips into simple shapes.
• Use light pencil lines to plan facial features.
• Add shadows to show form and depth.
• Use acrylic markers to add color and creative details safely.
• Create a small face study that shows at least one clear expression.
• Explain one choice made about shape, shading, color, or expression.

Success Criteria

A successful drawing will:

• Use simple construction shapes before adding details.
• Place the lips and nose in a believable relationship to each other.
• Include at least two areas of light and shadow.
• Show an emotion through the shape of the mouth, nose, or nearby facial lines.
• Use acrylic markers carefully, with colors that support the design.
• Include the artist’s own creative choices rather than copying every line exactly.

Introduction: Hook and Objectives

Hook question: How can a tiny change in the shape of someone’s lips or nose make a face look happy, worried, surprised, or serious?

Look at a tutorial or facial reference for a moment. Notice how the nose is not just a straight line and how lips are not simply two curved lines. They are forms with planes, curves, highlights, and shadows.

Tell the learner:

“Today, you will learn how to draw noses and lips using simple shapes. You will practice with pencils first, then use acrylic markers to add color and personality. Your goal is not to make a perfect copy. Your goal is to observe carefully and make thoughtful art choices.”

Quick Warm-Up: Facial Expressions

1. Say or write four emotions: happy, surprised, worried, and grumpy.
2. For each emotion, make a tiny mouth sketch using only a few lines.
3. Discuss: Which direction do the corners of the lips move? Does the mouth open? Does the nose wrinkle or widen?

Body of the Lesson

Part 1: I Do — Demonstrating Simple Shapes

A. Constructing a Nose

Model the process slowly while the learner watches. Use very light pencil lines.

1. Draw a small, rounded wedge or upside-down triangle to suggest the main direction of the nose.
2. Add a soft oval or curved shape at the end for the nose tip.
3. Place two smaller curved shapes for the nostrils. Avoid making them perfect circles.
4. Show the sides of the nose with gentle curves rather than dark outlines.
5. Choose one side for the light source. Keep that side lighter.
6. Add a soft shadow underneath the nose tip and beside the nostrils.
7. Blend or soften some pencil marks with a clean finger, tissue, or blending tool if available.

Key teaching point: A nose is a three-dimensional form. Dark lines are usually most useful under the nose, around the nostrils, and where the nose meets the face.

B. Constructing Lips

1. Begin with a light horizontal guideline to show the opening between the lips.
2. Mark the center point, called the cupid’s bow, on the upper lip.
3. Build the upper lip with two gentle curves that meet near the center.
4. Draw the lower lip as a fuller, softer curve.
5. Keep the corners of the mouth lighter than the center line at first.
6. Add a shadow below the lower lip to make it look raised from the chin.
7. Leave a small highlight on the lower lip where light would shine.

Key teaching point: Lips are not flat stickers. They wrap around the front of the face, so the center may look fuller while the corners turn back into the face.

Quick Check

• Where is the darkest part of the nose usually found?
• Which lip is usually fuller: the upper lip or the lower lip?
• Why should some lines be lighter than others?

Part 2: We Do — Guided Practice

Work together through one nose study and one lip study. The learner may follow a tutorial, observe the instructor, or use a reference.

Guided Nose Study

1. Divide a sketchpad page into four small boxes.
2. In the first box, draw only the basic nose shape.
3. In the second box, add the nose tip and nostrils.
4. In the third box, add light and shadow.
5. In the fourth box, try a different nose angle: front view, three-quarter view, or side view.

Pause after each box and ask:

• What shape did you start with?
• Which part is closest to the viewer?
• Where should the shadow go if the light comes from the upper left?

Guided Lip Study

1. Draw three light guidelines: one for the center line, one for the upper lip, and one for the lower lip.
2. Create three expressions: smiling, surprised, and serious.
3. Use different corner positions to change the emotion.
4. Add a small shadow beneath each lower lip.
5. Erase construction lines gently after the final shape is clear.

Part 3: You Do — Independent Creative Challenge

Choose one of the following options:

Option A: Expression Portrait

Draw a close-up face showing one emotion. Include the nose and lips as the main focus. Choose from happy, curious, surprised, sleepy, confident, or worried.

Option B: Feature Collection

Create a page containing four noses and four pairs of lips. Give each one a different angle, style, or expression.

Option C: Character Design

Invent a character. Decide whether the character has a wide smile, tiny lips, a button nose, a strong nose, or another interesting feature. Write one sentence about the character’s personality.

Independent Drawing Steps

1. Lightly sketch the overall placement of the nose and lips.
2. Build the features with simple shapes.
3. Check the proportions before adding details.
4. Add shadows with pencil. Press lightly first, then darken only the deepest areas.
5. Erase unnecessary construction lines.
6. Test acrylic markers on scrap paper.
7. Add marker color in layers. Let one layer dry before adding another.
8. Use a darker marker or pencil for selected accents rather than outlining everything heavily.
9. Add a highlight or small decorative detail to show personal style.
10. Write a title for the drawing and one sentence describing the expression.

Acrylic Marker Safety and Technique

• Use markers in a well-ventilated space.
• Keep marker tips away from eyes, mouths, and clothing.
• Do not press too hard, because acrylic markers can release a lot of ink.
• Replace caps tightly when finished.
• Test colors on scrap paper before using them in the drawing.
• Use a protective sheet under the sketchpad.
• Allow the ink to dry before closing the sketchbook or adding another color.

Formative Assessment and Feedback

During the lesson, check understanding by asking the learner to:

• Point to the light source in the drawing.
• Circle the darkest shadow on the nose.
• Explain how the mouth shape shows an emotion.
• Show the basic shapes hidden beneath the finished feature.

Give specific feedback using this format:

• Notice: “I notice that your lower lip is fuller than your upper lip.”
• Explain: “That helps the mouth look three-dimensional.”
• Suggest: “You could add a soft shadow under the lower lip to make it stand out more.”

Conclusion: Closure and Recap

Gallery Walk or Show-and-Tell

Display the finished drawing or hold it up for review. If working independently, place it beside the tutorial or reference and compare the choices made.

Ask the learner to complete these statements:

• “One simple shape I used was…”
• “The shadow that helped my drawing look realistic was…”
• “My character or expression looks…”
• “Next time, I want to practice…”

Exit Ticket

Draw one small nose or pair of lips in two minutes. Add one shadow and one highlight. Label the light source with an arrow.

Summative Assessment

Evaluate the final drawing using the following four-point checklist:

• 4 — Excellent: Uses clear shapes, believable proportions, purposeful shadows, a strong expression, and creative marker details.
• 3 — Successful: Uses shapes and shading correctly, shows an expression, and includes some creative color choices.
• 2 — Developing: Shows the basic features but needs more attention to proportions, shadows, or expression.
• 1 — Beginning: Needs support to use construction shapes and show the relationship between light, shadow, and form.

Differentiation and Adaptations

For Learners Who Need More Support

• Use a step-by-step tutorial with large, simple shapes.
• Practice one feature at a time instead of drawing a complete face.
• Use dotted guidelines or a light grid.
• Limit the palette to two marker colors and one pencil.
• Offer sentence starters such as “The light comes from…” and “My expression shows…”

For Learners Ready for a Challenge

• Draw the nose and lips from three different angles.
• Show the same character with three different emotions.
• Experiment with warm and cool colors to change the mood.
• Add nearby facial features, such as a chin, cheek, or part of an eye.
• Try a limited-color portrait using only three acrylic markers.

Flexible Learning Formats

• Homeschool: Work at a comfortable pace and photograph the finished studies for a digital art folder.
• Classroom: Use partner discussions, shared references, and a small exhibition of finished work.
• Online or training setting: Demonstrate under a camera, use a digital tutorial, and ask learners to hold drawings up for feedback.

Optional Follow-Up Project

Create a “Face Feature Flipbook.” On separate pages, draw the same face with different lips, noses, and emotions. Add marker color to each page and arrange the pages so the expression appears to change as the pages flip.