Teach Your Child Colors: Purple Day

This series of articles is designed to help parents of toddlers who are looking for innovative ideas to help their children learn their colors. This article's topic is the color Purple. Your toddler will enjoy the food, activities, and field trip associated with the color purple. It is more fun to invite a play partner to share in your toddler's journey of discovery.

The day is broken into four parts, setting the stage, the activity, the food, and the field trip. It is designed to create a learning "event" that will be as much fun for parents as it is for the kids.

Set the Stage

Build excitement for the day by telling your child they are going to have a friend visit for Purple Day. Consider buying or laying out special purple clothes for the exciting day. Make it a special event for your toddler.

The Activity

1) Start by having your toddler color the purple portion of a black and white rainbow outline. The colors of the rainbow run, top to bottom, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple.

Use washable purple markers, green pipe cleaners, and coffee filters to make purple flowers. Have your child color the coffee filters with the purple markers then spray the filters with water to cause the marker to run.

2) Put washable red and blue finger paint on your child's fore finger and thumb, respectively.

Recite the poem:

Rum diddley, rum diddley, rum diddley, rum,

Come purple, come purple, come purple, come.

Rub your finger on your thumb.

Come purple, come purple, come purple, come.

Have your child rub her finger and thumb together, creating purple paint.

Use the mixed paint to create finger print bugs on a piece of construction paper.

3) Mix shaving cream and a little purple food coloring in a larger zip lock bag. Use the sealed bag as a home made "etch a sketch" by having your child write in it with their finger tip.

The Food

Make peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches. Use a large flower shaped cookie cutter to create flower shaped sandwiches. Use a small flower shaped cutter on the top piece of bread so the jelly is visible. Serve with purple grapes and purple cows (grape juice with ice cream).

The Field Trip

Play at the purple park. Go to a park that has purple playground equipment.