News Corp drawing competition: Aussie kids reveal hopes for life after lockdown

We asked Aussie kids to show us what they most wish for when lockdown ends. These are the adorable results.

From remote schooling to cancelled birthday parties, Covid-19 and lockdowns have disrupted the lives of Aussie kids more than we ever could have imagined.

But, as News Corp’s youngest readers have shown, there is hope ahead.

When asked to submit an original artwork showing what freedom after lockdown looks like to them, the nation’s kids threw themselves into the task with gusto.

Miranda Brown, 11, is dreaming of a hot air balloon ride.

Arabella McCloy, 5, says she wants a holiday to Hamilton Island.

The results are both uplifting and poignant.

Miranda Brown, 11, is thinking of taking to the skies for a hot air balloon adventure.

Arabella McCloy, 5, and Sienna Ferraro, 6, are both dreaming of a beach holiday in Queensland with their families.

Carla Potenza, 12, is also craving the sand between her toes as her striking textured work “The Beach” shows.

Sienna Ferraro is looking forward to a trip to Queensland.

Talented artist Gabriella Roussou, 10, spent over four hours on her stunning work.

Carla Potenza, 12, is dreaming of the beach.

Continuing the theme, talented artist Gabriella Roussou, 10, has drawn on her love of Japanese anime for her dazzling freehand drawing of two friends at the beach.

Due to Melbourne’s lockdown, seven-year-old Natasha Rosenburg has been unable to pick up her new pet rabbits.

Natasha is looking forward to meeting her new pet rabbits.

As her adorable image of her two furry friends shows, this is her number one priority now that the lockdown has lifted.

Milla Osborn, 9, is looking forward to reconnecting with nature, as her touching drawing of a solitary flower shows.

Milla Osborn, 9, has depicted a solitary flower.

And when it comes to spreading the message the world needs to heed, Ebony McKenzie, 7, has hit the mark with her drawing, which states “No more Covid - stay home’.

Ebony McKenzie, 7, is spreading the health message.

Dr Kimberley O’Brien, Principal Child Psychologist at the Quirky Kid Clinic, said art could be a way for children to express their feelings.

The lockdowns had given kids and families a chance to pause and “think about the big picture and what they find important,” Dr O’Brien said.

Seven-year-old Ida Southey’s beautiful painting “Fun at the Fair”.

“Goal setting or vision casting over what their ideal world would look like or their ideal day would look like after lockdown is good. It conveys a sense of hope and excitement about the next chapter,” she said.

— with David Mills

Charlie misses the peacock that lives at her school. She did this drawing with pencil with a bee’s wax background.

Priya Jathes is looking forward to flying a kite at the park with friends. Picture: Supplied.

Thirteen-year-old Kate Williamson’s stunning portrait of a quokka.