Colours have a strong presence around us. Colours are the first things we perceive and human emotions and the way they interact with the environment are directly or indirectly influenced by colours. Every colour has a significance in our lives and without seeing them we would not be able to assert the importance of things around us and be able to utilize them. Even as a baby opens his eyes, it starts interacting with colours from the start. Therefore, it is important that babies, as they grow up develop strong colour recognition skills and differentiation abilities.
Babies develop colour identification skills by 18 months of age and the ability to differentiate colours by 2.5 to 3 years of age. During this period of time, it is important that the toddlers are supported with aids that fast track the development of colour recognition and differentiation skills. Colour recognition is one of the basic skills that kids acquire in their early years and can be the foundation of acquiring new skills like arithmetic and language skills. It helps the kids to grasp communication skills easily and also provides a developmental outlet to their inherent creativity. It helps kids in attempting to describe things around them and essentially helps them develop perception and speech abilities. Colour recognition and association skills are instrumental in making kids aware of their surroundings and any imminent critical situation around them.
A child’s oral development starts in the formative years of 1-2 and at this time it is important that the child is supported by simple but colourful toys that help him develop his cognitive abilities and encourage him to describe so that speech abilities come to the front. Simple primary colours help them recognize and describe colours and objects.
As a child progresses in age and reaches the age of 3 to 4, the increase in colour patterns and colour blocked items around him increases his physical and mental activity, encouraging him to develop higher speech and communication abilities and helping him interact and learn from his surroundings. Simple games in colour help him develop important basic skills needed to learn further.
When the kids go to preschool, they learn through colour patterns and games. This is because colour recognition is one of the first skills a kid develops and can be used as a learning tool for the kids.
Colours not only help in development of speech, motor and arithmetic skills, they also help in developing the personality of a kid as they increasingly become aware of different colours around them by the age of five and learn to like and prefer certain colours. This helps them develop their thinking skills and a sense of belonging. The kids learn how to form and voice their opinions from the start through colours. Which colour a kid likes or does not like tells us a lot about the kid’s developing abilities and outlook. From personality traits to fundamental abilities of spatial arrangement, motor skills, cognitive abilities and communication skills, colour recognition and differentiation skills are at the root of everything a kid learns in his toddler years.
As the toddler grows beyond the age of five, colouring patterns in their learning process helps them develop fine motor skills and later helps them pick the pencil and take to writing letters. Thus, colour recognition leads to development of basic writing skills in pre schoolers before they join conventional schooling system. As they colour and start moving their wrists, their movement becomes more refined and coordinated which leads to the development of hand eye coordination needed for further learning.
As children increase their interaction with colours, they start establishing the relationship between objects and start understanding the world around them. They also develop spatial and orientation skills which introduces organisational skills to them and teaches them about the proper placement of objects in their surroundings and helps them keep things in order. This is the start of introduction to the value of discipline for the kids.
As kids interact with colours and develop patterns, they are not only having fun but they start developing an inclination towards experimentation. They start developing independent thinking and individual tastes which leads them to experimenting with colours and experiencing colours on their own terms. This establishes a keenness in children towards experiential learning and self-learning. Experimenting with colours are the first signs of developing a distinct personality and advanced mental abilities which help kids advance to higher classes. It helps kids study independently and develop their learning methods on their own in later periods of their life.
When kids start identifying more colours and amp up their interactions with colours, they are introduced to newer topics. There is so much for the toddler to take in and understand and often conversations around a topic and a spark of interest from the kid’s side is spurred from his colour recognition skills. As he identifies more colours and starts to recognize more objects, his curiosity expands and he asks questions about new topics and thus, learns about many new things around him. At such times, it is important that questions are encouraged and answered with honesty and transparency so that the kids are clear on the fundamentals of objects and experiences around them. Teachers in pre school and parents play a pivotal role here in directing the conversation around new questions in the right direction.
At SAI Angan, the teachers of preschool understand the important role colours play in the early education of the tiny tots. Colours appeal to the senses of the child and therefore play a crucial part in the multisensory approach of learning that SAI Angan takes for its precious toddlers. The campus of SAI Angan is built like a colourful castle where the imaginative and creative capabilities of a child are allowed to blossom through experiential and interactive learning. Whether it’s through colourful games, patterns and colouring or finding colour in everyday objects, the teachers of SAI Angan recognize colour as an important tool in educating the kids and helping them acquire new skills. No activity of the multisensory approach to learning at SAI Angan is complete without the use of colours.
