Babies and young children are fascinated by colour. It has the ability to stimulate their mind and grab their attention. A baby is born with monochrome vision and is unable to distinguish the difference between colours, until around 8 months when their colour vision fully develops. By 3-4 years, a child can begin to recognise and name basic colours as frequent exposure can help strengthen this skill.
But, not only is it enjoyable for a child to be surrounded by colour, it is also beneficial to their development. Infinite Playgrounds, educational play area designers and retailers of playground canopies, have provided us with more of an insight.
The significance of colour
We shouldn’t underestimate the importance of colour in a child’s life.
As we know, babies do not have the ability to see colour. At 8 months, they begin to notice bright colours and this stimulates their minds. Exposing a baby to different shades of the same colour can help them make important colour connections early on in life rather than surrounding them with the same primary colours. Experts have said that showing patterns to a baby is important as it provides visual and cognitive stimulation for a growing baby as they focus on what they can see.
Having the ability to differentiate between colours is important for a child to get through younger life too. Learning colours allows them to recognise significant visual hues such as red as a code for danger and the meaning behind traffic lights. It is useful outside of the curriculum too — knowing the difference between a red and a blue coloured tap.
The knowledge of different hues of colours can improve a child’s ability to creatively write. Describing an object without saying its colour is difficult! Similarly, when they are exercising their imagination when creating a story, colour is an important part of descriptive techniques.
There has been a large amount of research done on the effects of colour on people and behaviour. Some experts claim that different colours enhance learning in different ways:
- Blue — a colour that encourages creativity, if overused however, it can bring the mood down in a room. A cool blue enhances relaxation levels in individuals.
- Yellow — a colour of happiness for children as it is associated with sunshine. This can lift the mood and excite a child due to its vibrant appearance.
- Orange — this is said to enhance critical thinking and memory.
Teachers have noticed that they are happier teaching in a colourful classroom too. It gives them various colours to refer to when teaching and creating an overall pleasurable place to work. Research has shown that colours are more memorable than monochrome too — a bright and colourful classroom makes new learned experiences stick in the mind.
Add colour to learning
As a teacher or parent, you may be wondering how you can ensure that children and pupils learn the essentials of colour. From decorating your classroom to introducing games based on colour, there are plenty of ways that you can incorporate colours into the classroom.
Outdoor learning is a fun way to get children engaging in new experiences. Consider installing colourful playground canopies and parasols. These can sit over areas of a playground, allowing the sun to shine through and create many colourful patterns for children to enjoy. Pupils can trace shadows of the patterns on the floor with chalk and learn how they move throughout the day with the sun.
Bring colour into the classroom by talking about its significance in different countries. Discuss how colours have different meanings in various countries, for example red signifies good luck in China and green is a colour of independence for Mexicans. Encourage children to use colour to create their own national flags and teach them more about the country.
For younger children who enjoy more hands-on play, introduce them to brightly coloured mats, books and toys. Research has highlighted the importance of messy play too — where children can take part in unstructured play and get their hands dirty! Let them play with brightly coloured foodstuff such as jelly and develop their fine motor skills too.
Dedicate part of your week to reminding children about colours. There are many games that you could add onto the end of any lesson too. How about colour eye-spy, colour matching memory games or presenting coloured flashcards and encouraging pupils to name them.
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