Does your child know their colours?

Activities to teach your child colours

One of the common concerns that parent’s often share with us is that their child is having trouble learning colours. Generally speaking I’d recommend your child knows their colours during their preschool years. Being able to recognise colours is an important skill to have before your child goes to school as teachers often integrate colours into their instructions to the class. I have had the pleasure of helping many parents teach their children about colours and have developed loads of activities to use in therapy and share with parents.

It’s important to remember that many children need lots of repetition and practice to learn their colours. If your child is just beginning to learn colours I recommend introducing one colour at a time.

I’m excited to share with you my SUCCESS SECRETS for teaching your child about colours

Drawing
Focus on colours during drawing activities by

1. Naming the colour for your child e.g. “that’s a red car”
2. Asking your child to identify the colour e.g. “where is something blue in your picture?”
3. Withholding the pencils/crayons and asking your child what colour they would like.

Board games
There are many board games that you can use to help your child learn colours. It is common for most board games to involve coloured tokens in the game. Great board games to play with your child include “pop up pirate,” “piggy goes pop,” “tumbling monkeys” and many more. Encourage your child to request the colour they want to use during the game e.g. “yellow please.” Ask your child to find a colour for  you to use during the game e.g. “can you find the yellow one for me?” These board games are usually in stock at Target, Big W or Kmart.

Find a colour hunt
Play a treasure hunt game in your house or in the yard. Take turns to name a colour and race to find the first object that is the named colour. If your child needs help with this print out a coloured square of circle that they can take with them to match to the item. Whoever collects the most items for the target colour wins and can then choose the next colour for the colour hunt.

Online games
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/preschool/ngames/colors.htm

http://www.fisher-price.com/us/fun/games/colorshapes/default.asp

Ipad, iphone, ipod touch apps

“Color Slapps” app
“iPlay & Sing” app
“Colouring Fun”
“Doodle Buddy”
“Glow Coloring”