6 Ways to Teach Your Toddlers Colors
March 27, 2017
Starting from birth, kids are constantly listening to the words spoken around them. The rate at which toddlers acquire new words and information is truly amazing, but with so much to learn, it’s always important that we, as parents, help them out in their quest to learn it all.
One early skill toddlers need is to learn is colors. Luckily there are many ways to foster a love and learning of colors so that your toddler get ahead of the pack, learning all they can. Use the following ways to help your child learn colors sooner:
Playing with Food
Most parents discourage their kids from playing with their food, but sometimes playing with food (or at least noticing it) can help kids learn colors. You may already know that the more colorful the food on your child’s plate, the healthier it is.
Load up your child’s plate with dishes that include vibrant colors, like red, orange, and green peppers, tomatoes, carrots, and salads. While eating, talk about the foods they’re eating and the colors on their plate. As a bonus, while talking about the vivid colors on their plate, you’ll be thrilled to know that your kids are eating healthy, too!
Sidewalk Chalk and Finger Paints
Kids love creating artwork, and both finger paints and sidewalk chalk come in an array of different colors that can help your little one learn colors quickly and easily. Take your child out to the driveway and color familiar shapes and objects using sidewalk chalk. Hand your toddler some chalk, and encourage him to scribble away, talking about the different colors that you give him.
On a rainy day, get out construction paper and washable finger paints, and let your child explore colors kinesthetically, talking about the colors in each pot, and each color she uses on the paper. In no time, your child will be an expert in color identification, while working towards drawing shapes and pictures for themselves.
Learning Digitally: Screen Time
All kids love their screen time, and why not use it to put them to work? Learning apps are great for teaching kids colors, as well as many more critical early learning skills. Look for an app that uses vibrant colors and pictures, and is rewarding for kids who complete each task. In fact, a game like Tower Puzzle Games is great for helping your little one to learn colors, while also learning about size, and much more.
Great Outdoors
Some of the most vibrant colors are outside! Encourage your child to love nature, and colors come naturally. While outside, talk about the big blue sky, or the puffy white clouds.
For slightly older children, talk about the different colors of fall leaves, and the colors of the wildlife they see on a walk through the park or nearest walking trail. By noticing the colors in their environment, kids will not just learn about colors, but about nature and science, too.
Crayons, Puzzles, and Printables
Building off the above advice, crayons and printable coloring pages are an exciting and economical way to foster an awareness of colors with your little learner. With so many free coloring pages available on the web, it’s an easy way to provide valuable resources to help your child without breaking the bank.
For older children, you can find PDF tracing worksheets, that will help your child learn shapes, letters and numbers. Use these pages to do double duty, talking about the colors they’re using as your child traces. Encourage your child to use lesser-known colors to add to your child’s mental library of colors. This way your child will practice a plethora of important early learning skills, all while completing one activity.
Life Experiences
As with many other skills in early childhood, kids learn simply through exposure. By talking about the everyday objects in the surrounding environment, your child will start to understand and acquire language for the colors nearby. Likewise, taking your child somewhere, such as a simple trip to the beach, can also jumpstart a conversation about color and shapes.
Kids are like sponges that soak up the information presented to him. All they need is a little help from parents like us to get all that they need to learn more advanced skills. Utilizing the above tips, you will find that your toddler will quickly learn colors, as well as practice invaluable skills, necessary to understanding the world around them.
