When you look through rose coloured glasses, the world appears happy and pink!!!
For a young child understanding that colour is an abstract property of a material is extremely complex, and unimaginable. That a child will eventually follow that light rays are not coloured, but every object reflects a certain colour, and that is the colour perceived by the human eye is something many adults also do not think about or absorb. Colour does not even exist if there is no observer. It is a slightly subjective perception depending on the receiving eyes.
Colour is a basic property that can be used beautifully to codify in science, to add numbers in maths, show landforms in geography in maps, and much more. It is great to set the base right to use this property effectively at a young age.
As the child has experiences with the world around, and with toys that isolate colour, there is growing understanding of the same. This is one of the first “scientific” properties of materials that the child fully comprehends and enjoys.
What can we do in Early Years to enable and enhance understanding of colours as a theoretical concept, as well as its practical application? Here is a map of the chromatic area in a simplistic fashion to show the various points of development:
To explain this in slightly greater detail
At home and in schools it is important for preschoolers to have concrete experiences with colours, so they can discover its abstract nature by themselves. This will aid them in their journey of learning further about colours
