Do you know how to teach color recognition to your toddler?
Image by Myriam Zilles from Pixabay
Toddlers lover colors, and they try to catch everything that seems colorful to them. Even in a toy shop, they try to grab the toys containing a lot of colors. Usually, most children learn to identify colors by the age of 18 months. However, they learn to name the colors by the age of 2.5 to 3 years.
However, it can be difficult for some parents to teach their children learning the names of colors. Some children cannot identify colors correctly, even at the age of 5 to 6 years.
Teaching colors is complicated
Some children can learn numbers easily and dictate them correctly if you ask them. But when it comes to colors, they cannot identify them accurately. Usually, parents make the mistake of teaching them the secondary colors directly. They tell them about colors like pink, yellow, magenta, purple, but forget to teach them the basic colors, that are red, blue and green.
When children do not know about primary colors, they are not able to identify the colors correctly. Therefore, parents and teachers need to teach the primary colors before moving to other shades. Even psychologists suggest teaching the children about red, blue, green, and yellow colors before teaching other colors.
Let us check the best ways to teach color recognition to toddlers.
Teaching through games
Children can learn easily when they enjoy the process. Every child loves to play games, and teaching them colors using games can be the best way. You can use games in which your child needs to identify the things with the colors. Such games will increase the interest of your child in colors.
You can try different games to teach your child about colors and see which works best for him/her. For example, you can take a pack of crayon colors and some colorful toys and place them on a table. Then ask your child to match the crayons with the toys of the same color.
DIY color books
There are many color books available in book stores. Although teaching through books is a traditional method, you can give it a modern touch for your child. Ask your child to collect objects of same colors and ask him/her to draw their pictures and fill the colors in them. Doing this will help them know which color to fill in an area of the object.
There are blank pictures given in these color books. You can ask your toddler to fill the pictures with colors of their choice. It is better to tell them which color to fill in which area to create meaningful drawings. Use crayons instead of any other colors as they are easy to use for little kids.
Favorite items
Every child is fond of some things in their house. These things can be a toy, a dress, or any other thing in the house. Some children cry for their favorite things until you give it to them. It may not necessarily be their toys of feeding essentials. Tell them the colors of their favorite items as it is easy for them to learn these colors because they like these things.
Fruits and Foods
If your child is fond of eating, foods are a great way to help them learn about colors. Healthy foods are always colorful. For example, apples, bananas, strawberries, and grapes are all colorful fruits, and the colors are primary, that every child should learn first. When you offer your child a fruit, ask him/her to identify its color. Every day you offer your child food, and this is one of the best ways to make them learn about colors. However, first, you need to tell them about the colors of different fruits and foods and help them to learn. Your child will learn about most of the colors while eating fruits every day. It will also help you to maintain the health of your children.
Dresses for your child
Kids love their clothes, and they like to put together different clothes to make a combination. If your child likes some clothes in their wardrobe, ask them to identify their color. If your toddler does not recognize the colors accurately, tell them the right colors.
Tell your toddler to take out the clothes of various colors from the wardrobe to help them practice identifying colors. If the child is not able to recognize the right colors you need to guide him/her by telling the colors of clothes in the wardrobe.
Bring them toys
Kids love toys, and toys are perfect for learning colors. Visit a reputed toy store and buy some small toys of multiple colors. Ask the salesperson to show you some toys for learning colors. Many companies make kits containing several small colorful toys that you can use to teach your child.
First tell your child the colors of toys like red, blue, green, yellow so that they can learn the basic colors before learning the combinations. So toys are a great way to introduce your toddler to a variety of primary and secondary colors.
Explore nature
Nature is filled with a variety of natural colors. It shows us different colors to make our lives colorful. When you take your child out for shopping, playing, or school, tell them about the various colors of things you see. These are some examples of things that you can use to teach your child.
- Tell them that the sky is blue.
- The color of plants is green.
- Different colors of flowers in a garden.
- Show them the colors of birds and animals.
- Different colors of cars and buses you see on the road.
- Tell them about the colors of a traffic signal.
Here, you need to remember to tell your child about the colors of things while going outdoors for any purpose. Once you teach your child about colors, he or she will tell you about the colors of things when you take them out for the next time.
Taking learning to the next level
As your toddler learns the basic colors and can identify them in different objects, it’s time to take make them learn more. You need to tell them about the wide range of other colors that exist in nature and objects. For example, you can teach them about the colors of a rainbow and the shades other than primary colors.
Moreover, tell them about the colors that form by combining two primary colors. For example, mixing red and yellow creates an orange color. Mixing red and blue produce purple while combining blue and yellow creates green.
Regularity is the key
It is essential to teach your child regularly about primary and secondary colors to develop their mind. Within a few weeks, a kid can learn identifying colors of various objects around them. So regularity is the key to let your child learn about colors and retain them in their mind. With a few weeks or learning, your child will be able to memorize primary as well as secondary colors.
Let your toddler show off
When you get together with your family members, friends, or relatives, let your child show them what he or she has learned. Ask them questions about the colors of various things when others are around. If they tell it correctly, they are sure to gain admiration. You can ask your child questions like – What color of clothes they are wearing today?
Use videos
Videos are the best way to learn anything. There are plenty of videos for learning colors available on YouTube that you can show your toddler. All you need is to search the right videos that are easy to understand by your child and play or download them. Downloading them allows your child to view them offline.
Don’t forget to reward your child
Rewarding the children when they do anything right encourage them to do it more. As your kid starts to retain more colors or even show off his or her knowledge, make sure you reward them. It doesn’t have to be anything large; it’s going to operate even a tiny box of crayons and coloring book or toy.
Say to your kid that his/her learning is so great. Why don’t you choose a toy train you like? What color or train do you want? You can offer them gifts like chocolates and toys or any other thing your child likes.
Final words
These are the ways to help you teach color recognition to your child. Colors are not only for kids, but they also enhance the aesthetic appeal of your house. The paint on your walls plays a vital role in the visual appeal of your home. Using the right colors of paint and getting it done by a reputed company and improve the value of your property. Painting companies in Arncliffe offers free painting quotes Arncliffe to help people choose the right contractor.
Author BIO
Emily Bartels is a content writer at Aqua Painting Sydney. She enjoys writing on various topics mainly associated with Art and Parenting issues. Her famous articles are on the topic of Family problems, painting, and many more.