Experimenting with Color
Here's What To Do
1
Drop a few drops of food coloring into a clear plastic bottle of water. Tighten the top.
- (Optional: instead of food coloring and water, we could do a similar color mixing activity with watercolor or tempera paint on paper)
2
Give me the bottle and let me shake it to spread the color.
3
Add a second color into the bottle, and let me explore what happens when they mix together.
4
Repeat, rinsing out the bottle and starting with a new color, or adding a third color to the bottle.
Put PEER Into Action
P
Pause:
- Sit at the table with me, and ask me to choose the first color to put in the bottle.
E
Engage:
- "I'm putting blue into this bottle. Look at all the blue!"
- "Let's see what happens when we add red to the yellow!"
E
Encourage:
- Talk about the name of the color in the bottle, like: "Blue! The ocean is blue, the sky is blue, your ball is blue."
- Describe what's happening in the bottle, like: "The red and yellow are mixing together, and look! They're making a new color! Red and yellow make orange!"
R
Reflect:
- Did I enjoy this activity? Did I seem to like any colors more than the others?
Not quite ready?
If I'm not able to manipulate the color bottle by myself, do it yourself and hold it up so I can see.
Ready for more?
Set up washable paints and let me experiment with mixing colors together. Describe the new colors I'm making as I paint.
As your child masters this skill...
They will enjoy observing different colors.