When Graham turned four months old, we began to explore color together. It had nothing to do with speeding up his ability to identify and sort specific colors. It was simply about him discovering colors one by one and delighting in all the wild and wonderful places we find them in the world.
I have plans of returning to and cycling through these color studies for a few years as he grows, suiting the objectives at each time for whatever stage of development he happens to be in. But mostly, we’re discovering. We’re exploring. We’re playing. And it’s a joy.
I wasn’t expecting to find such enjoyment in the rediscovery process as I explored them with him, but I most certainly have. As we tune in to a specific color for a month at a time, it’s become a sort of mindfulness practice and it has been stirring my own creativity in surprising ways. I suppose I felt that with the learning of colors being rather elementary, I’d have little to gain and lots to give. But I’ve found myself kind of enchanted by the colors I get to share with him each month. So all of this is to say, we’re learning and growing together and that will always be my favorite.
I wanted to highlight what these color explorations have generally looked like for us with greater detail to be found in the upcoming specific color studies.
1. In Color Themed Discovery Baskets/Trays
Each month, I fill a basket with assorted (obviously baby safe) items in the color of study. Sometimes it’s feathers, bits of fabric, pieces of paper, blocks, toys, instruments, pretend food, odd and end household items and usually a wooden ring that I tie ribbon to and we take with us in the diaper bag everywhere we go.
2. In Color Themed Music
I’ve created a collection of color themed Spotify playlists for each color of study. (I’ll share the ones I’ve curated with each particular color study, but the process of crafting them was a fun way to discover new music.) The playlists began in the obvious way with songs containing the color of study. (If we happen to be studying yellow, we might listen to “Yellow Submarine” by The Beatles or “Yellow” by Coldplay, etc.)
But the process evolved and began to include songs about things of that color. (Again, if we’re studying yellow, the playlist might also contain songs about lemons or sunflowers.)
And finally, the process evolved once more and we found that we had discovered a sense of what each color sounded like, and began adding some songs that sounded like the color. It’s been a fun way to incorporate another one of the lesser acknowledged senses in regards to color.
3. In Poetry
Poetry engages the senses in its own unique way. It’s sensorial, but it also requires that we activate a part of our imagination as well. I’ve been trying to gather color themed poems, which has been much more of a search than I anticipated. But we are slowly building a collection. Rhythm and rhyme are wonderful for the early developmental stages and have definitely been captivating for Graham.
4. In Mindful Walks
In addition to the planned items above, when we go for walks or encounter a color that we’re observing, I simply try to be mindful of pointing it out. Our eyes begin to notice the specific colors around the house, in nature, at the grocery store and any other place we happen to be.
This is the general framework of our color studies. Each month, I’ll continue to share the particulars of our study of that color.
