A number of classroom teachers recently informed me that the students we share are having issues identifying colors. They had mastered this goal previously, but now seem to be having difficulty. I collaborated with one of my Speech Therapy Assistants, and an Occupational Therapy Assistant to create “My Color Book”. The book is designed to be interactive, so that the teacher, therapist, parent, and others can expand on the colors when working with the student.
Making the Color Book
- The circles were made using a 1 1/2″ circle paper punch, which can be found at your local craft store or on Amazon. All the pages were laminated with Velcro pieces added to the bottom for a color matching activity.
- The last page was made wider to hold 1-4 color circles to match on the page the student is working on.
- I used my Pro-Click Binding System so that I can easily reorder the pages if needed.
Pages of the Color Book
Each page features 3 images of items of the named color with the print name of the color at the bottom of the page. The pages are laminated (watch out for glare!) and colored circles are arranged vertically on a strip of Velcro on the right side of the page.
These pages can be adapted to suit a particular child, e.g. with a favorite toy (yellow Big Bird or red Ernie), a favorite shirt, or any items the child recognizes. Photos of actual items can be used, depending on the needs of the individual child.
Download the Color Book pages.
Tips for Using “My Color Book”
I created a “Tip Sheet” for use when working with the book. This is by no means an end all to the possibilities. This is just a short list that I came up with to share with the teachers and families. I am excited to hear the additional ideas that the families, teachers, and therapists will come up with!
The focus may be on learning the colors, but there’s so much more you can do with this book. For instance:
- On the right side of the book is a Velcro strip. Put 2-4 colored circles there (depending on student’s ability) and have them match the colored circle to the page you are working on.
- Shake it up! Rearrange the pages to keep the student from memorizing the order.
- Use low vision device if applicable.
- Find things in the room that are the same color as the page you are on.
- If the student knows their letters, have them read the individual letters on the page.
- Talk about the colors on the page. Is it dark or light?
- What are the three pictures you see on the page? Name them. Where do you find them?
- If the picture is of a food item, what does it taste like? Do you like this food?
- If the picture is a food item, how do you eat it? Does Mom or Dad cook with it?
- Think of what other colors something might be. For example, there is a green apple pictured. What other colors can an apple be?
- What letter sounds can you hear at the beginning of the word? The end of the word?
- Can you tell me a story using these three pictures?
- Ask the “wh” questions:
- Who likes ___?
- What is _____?
- When can you see ____?
- Where do you find ____?
- Why do you like/dislike ____?
