The Colors of Nature

Color activities work with children of all ages. With younger children, looking at the colors in nature helps to teach them their colors as they learn that “red” isn’t always the red in a box of Crayola crayons. With older children and preteens, color activities become more art-based and noticing nature can help this more independent bunch learn how to combine colors in their clothing or their rooms.

Rainbow Hunt – For a color activity that doesn’t require any props, simply challenge children on a walk to find one example of every color of the rainbow or the basic box of eight crayons. Play this as a memory game as well, by naming the different colors and having the children respond with what they found with that color.

Colors of the Season – Cut four-inch squares of construction paper in colors that the child would see on a nature walk – for spring, yellow, light green, dark green, white, pink. Punch a hole in each square and string onto a piece of yarn. As the child walks, they must find examples of those specific colors. If you are with more than one child, rotate the necklace to different children who then get to show the others with them at least one example of each color on the necklace.

Seasonal Color Wheel – Older children may prefer the challenge of mixing paint or color pencils to create the colors they see during a particular walk through nature.

Rainbow Stories – For this activity you’ll need a bag of multi-colored pony beads and enough yarn to make a necklace for each child. As the children find object in different colors, they earn one bead for each color. You can require that two children can’t suggest the same item to earn a bead (so if one child earns a yellow bead for a buttercup, another child must look for a bumblebee or a dandelion to earn their bead).

At the end of the walk, the children must recall the items that earned them each bead and then incorporate those items into a story that they will tell the others with them.

For the child interested in animals, try these Adventures in Color and Camouflage to show the child how animals rely upon the colors of nature to offer them protection. Whether kids are learning their colors or already know their colors, you can incorporate the hues in nature into art, storytelling, and science activities.

Seasonal Color Wheel

What are the colors of spring? Summer? Autumn? Winter? Each season offers a unique color palette. If an interior decorator selected colors for four rooms in the colors of each season, chances are that you’d have no difficulty telling what season was represented in each room. Once children become old enough to be aware that they’ve experienced a season in their past, they too would recognize the colors of the seasons.

You can do these activities during any season; you could even do them each month of the year. The activities go beyond simple color recognition to noticing the variations within colors. Try these as art projects, even if you don’t feel that you yourself are artistically inclined. Do the activities along with your children, students, scouts, or campers.

Color Match
Go to the hardware store and collect an assortment of paint chip samples (start with greens, browns, and grays). If you have the time and inclination, cut the strips apart into individual colors and toss them in a bag or envelope. Now, go outside with the kids and give everyone at least one of the paint samples and encourage them to explore the area looking for as close a match in nature as they can possibly find.

Players can switch to different colors if they can’t find what they are trying to match, or they can hold onto a color in the hopes of matching it elsewhere along their walk. Try this activity in natural settings as well as urban or suburban settings to contrast the colors of not just seasons but environments.

Color Wheel
This activity is a bit more complex because instead of matching colors the participants are creating color matches. Each player will need some paper and either colored pencils or watercolors. Although the manufacture is providing a range of colors, point out those colors can be mixed or layered to create other colors.

Take a plate and draw a circle on the paper. Divide the circle into six, eight, or twelve pie sections. Now, go outside and select a color distinctive of the season and color in one of the pie sections. Again, the yellow of forsythia might not be the yellow of the colored pencil, so encourage exploration and experimentation with the materials as participants practice mixing or layering colors.

Fill in each pie section with a different color. Notice how not all green leaves are the same color green and try to duplicate these different hues. Label the page with the season or the month. Try to repeat throughout the year, creating a color palette for each season.

Try either of these activities with preschoolers all the way up through adults. They give you an awareness of the variety of colors around you as well as bring clarity to the distinctive qualities of each time of the year.