Discover a fun preschool art activity teaching primary and secondary colors through famous art. Make a color wheel, mix paints, and paint rainbows!
This simple color wheel project introduces children to the concept of primary and secondary colors and their relationships to one another, and integrates art appreciation.
Sit with your child and tell them that you’re going to learn about colors, how artists make their own colors, and then create some art yourselves!
First, read Horse Museum by Dr. Seuss, which is an incredible introduction for very young children to what art is and how diverse it can be. If you can’t easily obtain a copy, watch this online reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UQkUgOIQVA.
Next, you will look at a few paintings by famous artists. The goal of this is not deep conversation over composition, but an introduction to the wide variety of art that exists in the world. You can use a cell phone, but a computer is better because it offers a larger screen. You can start by looking up some of the artists mentioned in the Dr. Seuss book. Since our project is about colors, point out all the different colors you see. Especially note varying shades of color. “Look at how many different greens the artists used here!” Children love to know the titles of works of art, so don’t forget to read those.
Tell your child you are going to make a tool that artists use called a color wheel. Give them a palette or plate with some red, blue, and yellow paint, a brush, and their color wheel template. (You should have all of those supplies for yourself as well! It’s important to do this project alongside them.) Tell them that red, blue, and yellow are called primary (which means “first”) colors because you can make all of the other colors with them. Instruct them to paint the sections on the color wheel template marked with number 1s with the primary colors, one color for each section. Clean the brush each time.
Next, show them that the sections in between the primary colors are all labeled with 2s, that is because the secondary (or “second”) colors will go there. These are green, orange, and purple, the colors made by mixing primary colors.
First, you will make green. Remove the color wheel template and place a piece of scratch paper down so they can test their green. Using a clean brush, show them how to mix a little blue with some yellow to create a green color. Test this color on the paper to see what it looks like.
Experiment with this! Show them how they can make different shades of green by mixing more or less of the blue and yellow together. Once your child has a green color they like, paint the section of the color wheel between blue and yellow with it.
Repeat the process that you just performed with green for orange and purple. Don’t forget to use clean brushes each time. Show them how the colors on the color wheel are in the same order as the colors in a rainbow. When your color wheel is finished, use your leftover paint to create rainbows on the extra paper!
While this project is a basic introduction to fine art appreciation and color theory, it also works on fine motor skills, following directions, cognitive skills, and even number recognition.
Teach your child how heat moves with this fun convection experiment! Watch red warm water rise and blue cold water sink in a hands-on science lesson.
Engage your preschooler with this sensory art project that combines textures, creativity, and vocabulary building. Learn how to create a tactile...
Create a colorful wind chime from recycled cans! Teach your child about recycling, wind, and sound while crafting a beautiful outdoor decoration.