Color Hunt & Fruit Rainbow

When planning an activity for an 8- and 4-year-old, it can be hard to find an idea that will keep both stimulated. These two activities fit the bill. My boys had a blast!

Color Hunt

A local park in town has the most breathtaking display of flower beds. I spend so much time ogling the flowers as I drive by, it's surprising I haven't rear-ended someone. To share the beauty of the gardens with my family, I planned a Color Hunt.

The supplies were simple: six large paint sample strips (ours were BEHR from Home Depot) in the colors of the rainbow (i.e. reds, oranges, yellows, etc.), which I cut in two.

I punched leaves out of the hues and used a brad to hinge them all together. I gave each of the boys their color book and sent them exploring to see how many of the colors they could find in nature.

This was SUCH a simple activity. What we found was that blue was an especially difficult color to find a flower of; we had to look no further than the sky, though!

Fruit Rainbow

The next day for a snack, I prepared a plate of various fruits for the boys. In front of them I placed a Rainbow Placemat that contained boxes for each of the colors.

The boys were instructed to place fruits of the correct color on their mats in the order specified. My oldest son's placemat had the full seven colors of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet), while the 4-year-old's contained the six basic colors (i.e. purple instead of indigo and violet).

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Download a 4-page PDF of both placemats here. Print, tape together, and laminate for durability.

FRUIT WE USED

Red: Strawberries

Orange: Mandarin oranges

Yellow: Pineapple

Green: Kiwi

Blue: Blueberries

Indigo: Grapes

Violet: Raisins

The boys used a small pair of serving tongs to move the fruit from the platter to their placemat, which provided a little extra fine motor practice for the younger of the two of them.

Alternative: Not a fruit-eating family? Have kids collect everyday objects from around the house to add to their rainbow mat!

(This isn't the first time we've eaten a rainbow. Check out our rainbow cupcakes and word puzzle here.)

Book Recommendations

To conclude our color fun, I read a book with each of the boys. The PreK book I chose for my youngest is by Betty Schwartz. This Magic Ribbon book is such a treat to read with its colorful animals. My son never ceases to be impressed when he turns the page and a new ribbon of color has been added to the rainbow from the previous page.

My oldest son and I enjoyed E. C. Krupp's book The Rainbow and You. It taught us a ton about how ancient cultures thought of the rainbow, who Roy G. Biv is, how the eye sees color, what rainbows are made of, etc. Both of us were astonished to discover how little we actually knew about these weather wonders!