A banner for your words, held by two angelsOne angel at each top corner. The banner sags between them and the scene sits below.
A stained-glass layout with a panel for your wordsThick black lines split the window. The scene fills the arch and the bottom strip holds the words.
A star whose rays carry your wordsOne big star at the top. Each ray widens as it falls, and one word goes on each.
A wreath layout with your words round the ringTwo circles make the ring. Letter between them and put the manger in the hole.
Looking in through a window, your words on the sillA stone window frame fills the sheet. The family is seen through it, the words along the ledge.
One line of your own inside a border of hollyRule the frame, set leaves in threes with berries between, and letter in the empty middle.
The scene above and your words on a scroll belowCut the sheet in two with a ruled line. Picture in the top two thirds, scroll in the rest.
The star's tail as the underline for your wordsLet the tail sweep down and run straight under the last word.
Your words along the hill line under the shepherdsThe hill is one long curve. Letters follow it, and the flock stands on top of them.
Your words as constellations in a night skyDot each letter like stars and join the dots with thin lines. One star is brighter than the rest.
Your words lettered on the stable's roof beamA long plank across the top of the stable, wood grain behind the letters.
Your words on a ribbon over a stable roofDraw the ribbon first, in three waves, so the words fit. The stable sits small underneath.
Nativity scenes 15
A paper nativity set of standing figuresA nativity scene is also called a crib or crèche. Give each figure a fold-back tab at its feet.
A school nativity play with a cardboard starA stage, a curtain, a doll in a box and a star on a stick. Draw the audience as rows of round heads.
A sky crowded with angelsLuke 2. A multitude of the heavenly host. Draw one angel well, then repeat it smaller into the distance.
A stable under one starLuke 2 names a manger and no stable; artists added the shelter. A sloped roof with the star above the ridge.
An angel above the shepherds' fieldLuke 2. The angel says Fear not and brings good tidings of great joy. Light falls in a wide cone.
An ox and a donkey looking over the manger's edgeNeither animal is in Luke or Matthew, yet they are in most nativity scenes. Two big heads, one small crib.
Bethlehem as flat-roofed houses up a hillside at duskLuke 2 calls Bethlehem the city of David. Stack boxes with small square windows up the slope.
The inn door with a lantern and no roomLuke 2. There was no room for them in the inn. A shut door, one lit window, two figures walking on.
Mary and Joseph beside the child in the mangerLuke 2. The shepherds find Mary, Joseph and the babe lying in a manger. Three plain shapes, heads bowed.
The road from Nazareth to BethlehemLuke 2. Joseph and Mary go up to Bethlehem. The donkey of most pictures is not in the text.
Shepherds hurrying down the hillLuke 2. They came with haste. Lean every figure forward and let the cloaks fly out behind.
Shepherds on a hill at night with their flockLuke 2. They keep watch over their flock by night. Three figures, a low fire and sheep as soft ovals.
Travellers from the east carrying three giftsMatthew 2. The text names gold, frankincense and myrrh and never says how many wise men came.
Wise men arriving at the door of a houseMatthew 2. They come into the house and see the young child with Mary. A doorway and bowed figures.
Wise men seeing the star from far awayMatthew 2. We have seen his star in the east. Tiny figures, a huge sky and one bright point.
Symbols 14
A bowl of smoking frankincense and a jar of myrrhMatthew 2. The second and third gifts. A footed bowl, one curl of smoke and a narrow-necked jar.
A camel in silhouette with a tasselled saddleOne hump, a long curved neck and thin legs. Fill it in flat and leave the tassels as gaps.
A candle in a window on a dark nightA tall flame, a short candle and a four-pane window. Shade everything except a ring of glow.
A donkey's head with long earsA long face, soft muzzle and ears as tall as the head. Tilt one ear.
A flock of sheep made from one cloud shape, repeatedOverlap the same fluffy outline six times. Only the front sheep gets a face.
A lamb lying downA cloud shape for the body, a small face at one end and four folded legs tucked under.
A lantern hanging from a wooden postA box of four panes with a flame inside. Light falls in a pool on the straw.
A shepherd's crook leaning on a stone wallA tall stick with a hook like a question mark. The wall is rough ovals fitted together.
A small chest of gold with its lid upMatthew 2. Gold is the first of the three gifts. Coins are stacked ovals with a shine on one edge.
A stable roofline with the star, drawn as one iconFive straight lines for the roof and posts, one star above. Small enough for a card corner.
An angel made from three trianglesA big triangle for the robe, two for the wings and a circle for the head.
An eight-pointed star with one long rayMatthew 2. The star stands over where the young child is. A plus, a cross and one ray stretched down.
An empty manger with straw and one beam of lightLuke 2. A manger is a feeding trough. Two crossed legs at each end and straw in short strokes.
Strips of cloth folded in a basketLuke 2. The child is wrapped in swaddling clothes. Soft bands laid over a woven rim.
Lettering 13
Bethlehem in letters stacked like housesLuke 2. Give each letter a flat roof and a window, and step them up a hill.
Emmanuel, with God with us underneathMatthew 1 gives the meaning: God with us. Large capitals above and small plain letters below.
Exceeding great joy in tall thin capitalsMatthew 2, King James wording, said of the wise men when they saw the star. Stretch every letter upward.
Glory to God in the highest, arched over the sceneLuke 2, King James wording. Rule two curved guide lines so the letters keep one height.
Good tidings of great joy on three stacked linesLuke 2, King James wording. Make the middle line the smallest and the last word the largest.
Good will, on a gift tagLuke 2: good will toward men. A tag with a punched hole, a loop of string and two words.
Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, along a winding roadLuke 2, King James wording, said by the shepherds. The words follow the road into the distance.
On earth peace, lettered along a horizonLuke 2, King James wording. Three words on one straight line with a low hill behind.
Unto you is born this day, inside a starLuke 2, King James wording. Draw the star first and shrink the lines to fit its points.
We have seen his star, on a night-blue stripMatthew 2, King James wording. Pale letters on dark paper, one star above the last word.
The word Joy with a star for the OThree letters as wide as the sheet. The star's points just touch the J and the Y.
The word Nativity with a star over the first iPlain capitals or joined-up writing. The star replaces the dot and throws one ray down.
The word Peace in candle-flame lettersLuke 2 has on earth peace. Each upright is a candle and each dot or serif is a small flame.
How it works
A Nativity poster needs a scene, a symbol or a line of lettering, and often all three. These nativity drawing ideas follow Luke 2 and Matthew 2, and a hint names its chapter wherever it leans on the text.
Read the full guide
What the two chapters say
Luke 2 has the journey to Bethlehem, the manger, the shepherds and the angels. Matthew 2 has the star, the wise men from the east and their three gifts. Neither chapter mentions a stable. Artists added one, and you may too.
A poster with a few words
Choose the words before you draw, then pick a layout that leaves room for them: a ribbon over the roof, the rays of the star, a scroll under the scene. Rule faint guide lines, letter in pencil, and ink the letters before the picture.
One star, one roofline and one manger read from across a hall. Add figures only on a large sheet.
For a night sky, shade the paper dark and leave the star as bare white.
Questions and answers
What are easy nativity drawing ideas?
Choose Easy in the list under the button. Fifteen ideas use plain shapes: a stable under one star, an empty manger, a lamb lying down, an angel made from three triangles, and the word Joy with a star for the O.
How many wise men were there?
The text does not say. Matthew 2 speaks of wise men from the east and names three gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. Draw as many travellers as your layout holds.
Were an ox and a donkey at the manger?
Neither Luke nor Matthew mentions them. They stand in most nativity scenes all the same, so both are in the list, with a hint that says they are not in the text.
What verse can I letter on a Nativity drawing?
Short lines letter best. From Luke 2 in the King James wording: Glory to God in the highest; good tidings of great joy; on earth peace. From Matthew 2: we have seen his star.