New
New
Year 5

Create a vector drawing

I can create and compare vector drawings.

New
New
Year 5

Create a vector drawing

I can create and compare vector drawings.

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Different tools can be used to create different effects.
  2. Different skills are needed to create different outcomes.
  3. Vector drawings differ from drawings created in paint programs.

Keywords

  • Reflect - to think carefully about something, like what you learned or how you felt during an activity

  • Vector - a type of image made using shapes, lines and curves

  • Pixel - a tiny square of colour that is part of a digital image

Common misconception

Vector drawings and paint program drawings are the same.

Vector drawings are made out of shapes, paint program drawings are more about line drawing.


To help you plan your year 5 computing lesson on: Create a vector drawing, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Give pupils time to plan before they draw. Encourage them to visualise the shapes they’ll need and what skills (like grouping or layering) might help. This helps them work with purpose and reflect more meaningfully afterwards.
Teacher tip

Equipment

Access to a drawing package such as https://oak.link/google-drawings

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

Loading...

6 Questions

Q1.
What does the 'duplicate' function do in a drawing?
Deletes an object
Changes the size of an object
Correct answer: Makes a copy and pastes it in one step
Moves an object to a new layer
Q2.
Which feature helps you focus on details by enlarging how you see the canvas?
Correct Answer: zoom, zooming, zoom in, zooming in
Q3.
Match the term with its definition:
Correct Answer:Border,The line around a shape

The line around a shape

Correct Answer:Handle,Used to resize or rotate

Used to resize or rotate

Correct Answer:Layer,Objects sitting on top or behind each other

Objects sitting on top or behind each other

Correct Answer:Align,Lines up objects neatly

Lines up objects neatly

Q4.
How can you move an object to the front in a drawing?
Resize it
Duplicate it
Align it
Correct answer: Change its order
Q5.
What happens when you ungroup objects?
They merge into one layer
Correct answer: They become separate again
They disappear from the canvas
They change their border colour
Q6.
What tool can you use to make sure objects are perfectly lined up in a drawing?
Correct Answer: align

6 Questions

Q1.
What is a key difference between vector drawings and paint program drawings?
Correct answer: Vector drawings use shapes, while paint program drawings use pixels
Paint program drawings are always better quality
Vector drawings cannot be resized
Paint program drawings use shapes instead of lines
Q2.
Which tool is most likely used in vector drawings?
Paintbrush
Eraser
Spray can
Correct answer: Shape tool
Q3.
What does the term 'reflect' mean in the context of creating drawings?
To copy a drawing
To create a mirror image
Correct answer: To think carefully about your work
To erase mistakes
Q4.
What is a paint program drawing made of?
Correct Answer: pixels
Q5.
Arrange these steps to create a vector drawing:
1 - Select a shape tool
2 - Add shapes to the canvas
3 - Group or adjust the shapes
4 - Save your drawing
Q6.
Match each term with its correct description:
Correct Answer:Vector drawing,Uses shapes, lines and curves to create images

Uses shapes, lines and curves to create images

Correct Answer:Paint program drawing,Made of tiny squares of colour that form an image

Made of tiny squares of colour that form an image

Correct Answer:Shapes,The building blocks of vector drawings

The building blocks of vector drawings

Correct Answer:Pixels,The basic units of paint program drawings

The basic units of paint program drawings