SPECTRUM SAVANTS – COLOR CONCEPTS ACTIVITIES

Mixing Secondary Colors

Make Paper Mache eggs or have students draw egg shapes on paper. Students select one primary color (such as yellow) to paint the top of the egg, and another primary color (such as red) to paint bottom of egg. Mix the two primary colors together and paint middle of egg the correct secondary color (yellow + red = orange).

Complimentary and Analogous Colors

Advanced students can show complimentary colors and analogous colors on their Paper Mache eggs.

Color Wheel #1

Using the above exercises, assign groups/students specific egg color creations so entire color wheel is demonstrated. Display eggs for full spectrum discussions. Painted eggs may be enhanced further in additional activities relating to design (see below).

Color Wheel #2

Make a color wheel using egg shaped pieces of construction paper. Glue the eggs around a center circle in their correct place and label according to the color wheel. Find pages in EggMania where eggs are used and discuss where they fit on the color wheel.

Warm and Cool Colors

Use illustrations from EggMania to help students identify warm colors and cool colors, noting how warm colors (red, yellow, orange) appear to advance and how cool colors (blue, violet, green) appear to recede. Have students paint or color in two versions of one of the illustrations (black-and-white print outs) from EggMania. On one use warm colors and in the other, only cool colors. Compare the two. Discuss how warm and cool colors also create feeling and mood.

Advanced Color Schemes

Older students can use the color wheel to create complex color schemes on their Paper Mache eggs. Assign students to research and then paint these color schemes: Split Complementary, Triadic, and Tetradic (Double Complimentary).

Gradient Colors

Have students create eggs showing radial and linear gradient color schemes.

Mood Rings

Using illustrations from EggMania, compare story text with the colors used in the illustration to demonstrate and discuss the artist intention in using color to create mood and tone. Example: Colors used on Pages 75-76 versus those used on Pages 77-78 show extreme contrasts in moods that are fitting to story dialogue. Students can then draw a face with a certain emotional expression (or image of their choosing) and then use colors to express appropriate mood.