In which stage of artistic development do children often draw people and houses the same height?

In the preschematic stage of artistic development, which typically occurs between the ages of 4 and 7, children begin to express their understanding of the world through their drawings, but they do so in a highly simplified and often proportional manner. During this stage, children may depict people and objects with little regard for perspective or realistic proportions; they often draw figures and houses as similarly sized, often presenting them one above the other on the page. This reflects their cognitive development, where they are starting to conceptualize ideas but do not yet possess the ability to accurately represent size relationships or spatial relationships within their artwork.

The preschematic stage is characterized by experimentation with shapes and symbols rather than a focus on realism. Children may use basic shapes to represent various elements of their drawings, indicating a growing awareness of the world around them, albeit in a stylized form. The focus on size uniformity in their drawings indicates that they are not yet applying the principles that would lead to more realistic representations, which would be seen in later stages, such as the schematic stage.

Thus, this understanding of artistic development makes the preschematic stage the correct choice for when children commonly depict people and houses at the same height.