Reading to Small Children about Colors

If you're around me for any length of time, you'll quickly establish that I am a color fiend.  So naturally, one of my favorite storytime themes so far has been color.  My audience is composed of very young children, so I put together a fun session for little bitties to learn the basics about colors.

Books

Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

I Say, You Say Colors by Tad Carpenter

Magic Colors by Patrick George

Colors by Orla Kiely

Lead-In

Begin the storytime by singing any songs you typically sing, introducing the theme, and pointing out any bright colors around the room.  With older children, you might even ask children wearing red to stand up, then blue, and so on as you move through the spectrum.  You could also have a brief discussion about color, naming your favorite and asking kids and parents to name their favorites, too.

Songs and Rhymes

I found a cute rhyme I found here, but I added pictures to make it more visual and interactive.  I printed out color copies of clip art to go with each item, and cut them into flash card sized pieces so I had a picture to show with each color.

ORANGE as a carrot, 

YELLOW as a pear,

PURPLE as a plum,

BROWN as a bear,

GREEN as the grass,

BLUE as the sky,

BLACK as a cat

RED as cherry pie

Felt Board Activity

We did a fun action game based on colored cars we might see as we go for a "drive".  I told the kids we were going for a pretend car ride and had them put their hands on an imaginary steering wheel.  I used felt cars in all the colors mentioned in a rhyme I found here.  Model each action as you reveal the color of the cars one by one.

When I See RED I put my hand on my head

When I see BLUE I touch my shoe

When I see GREEN I start to lean

When I see YELLOW I wave and say "Hello!"

When ORANGE is found I point to the ground

When I see PINK I think, think, think

Closure

Finish the storytime by singing any final songs you typically sing together such as the Goodbye Song, and make the topic more memorable by giving children a stamp or sticker as they leave.  For mine, I gave them a ladybug stamp with red ink and said "here is your little red ladybug" as I stamped their hand.  You could also have stickers available in multiple colors and have children tell you which color they'd like.

Additional Resources

Printable Rainbow Coloring Page

Baby Basics: Colors by Roger Priddy

Oh, the Colors/ De Colores: Sing Along in English and Spanish! by Ashley Wolff

A Color for Sketch: A Book About Colors by Orli Zuravicky

Color Crafts for Kids Pinboard by Tisha Baker

If you're looking for music to accompany a color-themed lesson, you'll love this!  To welcome families to the storytime room and hint at the theme, I played Ziggy Marley's "What a Wonderful World" from the Disney Reggae album.  We played shakers and danced to the music while we waited for everyone to arrive, which created a relaxed, happy atmosphere.

One last suggestion I have for anyone who intends to do a storytime or lesson based on color is to dress the part!  Wear colorful clothing and share you enthusiasm for all the beautiful hues waiting to be discovered in the world around us.  Happy reading!