Abstract: One of the most prominent characteristics of children's human figure drawing is disproportion. Over 300 children aged from 4.5 to 6.5 panicipated in this research. The results showed that the trunk/head ratios of all participants, averaged 1.3, increased from 4.5 to 5.5, then decreased until 6 and increased again on free drawing condition. Due to the relatively stable size of the head, the variation of the ratio was mostly caused by the variation of the size of the trunk, which is deemed pertinent to the cognitive development of body structure. On model drawing condition, the trunk/head ratio was significantly greater than that of free drawing, although the direction of variation was the same except ages of 4.5 to 5. Changing the order of drawing and exaggerating the function of body parts can also affect the ratio.

Key words: children's human figure drawing, trunk/head ratio, changing the order of drawing, exaggerating the function of body parts