Colors

This week's theme is COLORS. My daughter is obsessed right now with colors and whether or not things match. (She is thrilled when she discovers that one of her toys matches her shirt).

BOOKS:

Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Eric Carle and Bill Martin Jr.
Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh
Color Dance by Ann Jonas
Is It Red? Is It Yellow? Is It Blue? By Tana Hoban
A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
Elmer's Colors by David McKee


SONGS AND FINGERPLAYS:

"Wearing Colors"
If you have on red- touch your head
If you have on blue- touch your shoe
If you have on green- make a face that's mean
If you have on yellow- say "Hello"
If you have on orange- say "Good-bye"
If you have on brown- turn around
If you have on black- make your hands go smack
If you have on purple- pop up!
{source}

"Color"
Blue is the Lake,
(point to the floor)
Yellow is the sun
(point to the sky)
Silver are the stars,
When the day is done,
(wiggle fingers in the air)
Red is the apple,
(make circle with hands)
Green is the tree
(raise arms over head like branches)
Brown is a chocolate chip cookie for you and me!
(rub tummy)
{source}

"The Color Farm"
(Tune: “BINGO”)
There was a farmer had a cat (Clap hands to the beat.)
And Black was her name-o
B-L-A-C-K
B-L-A-C-K
B-L-A-C-K
And Black was her name-o.
Dog – BROWN
Cow – PURPLE
Horse – GREEN
Duck – ORANGE
Bird – BLUE
Chick – YELLOW
Pig – RED
Activities: Let the children make their own stick puppets to go along with the song.
Make additional verses for other color words: donkey – gray; flamingo – pink;
sheep- white; goat – tan, etc.
{source}


ART ACTIVITIES:

Obviously the possibilities are endless here! Colors are always part of art! Here are just a few ideas.

Finger Painting--You can even use foods like buttermilk or pudding along with a little food coloring if you don't have finger paints at home! Shaving cream works great as well.

Gumball Coloring by number. I am excited to use this because although my daughter can count, she doesn't really know what all the numbers look like yet.

If you're really ambitious, check out this fabric quiet book of colors {here}.


COOKING ACTIVITIES:

{Play Dough}

1 c. flour
1/2 c. salt
1 Tbsp. oil
1 tsp. cream of tartar
3/4 c. water
food coloring

Mix dry ingredients. If using food coloring, add to water before mixing in oil. Add oil and water to dry ingredients. Cook and stir mixture over medium heat until dough pulls away from the sides of the pan clinging together. Remove from heat and knead until smooth. Store in tightly covered container. Will not dry out if covered.

{Chunky Crayon Recipe}
{source}

1. Gather up all of your broken crayons, and cut them into small pieces. (An adult will need to complete this step.)

2. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.

3. Fill the muffin tin with an inch-thick layer of crayon pieces.

4. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the wax is melted.

5. Allow the tin to cool; then pop out the crayons, and they're ready for use.


FIELD TRIP:

Color Book Walk--Grab some blank pieces of paper and staple them together. Label each page with a different color at the top. Take a walk around the neighborhood (or the house if you would rather) and have your child point out things that are the color of the page you are working on. Draw a simple picture of the object (or let them do it). Fill the book with drawings you and your child see on your walk! (You could even do this over several days).

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Color Songs
Music and Rhyme Station
Crayola