Spring is the perfect time to learn about rainbows and colors with your child. Get out of the house for a little learning adventure with this free printable rainbow scavenger hunt!

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I’m so excited for spring…and I totally splurged and bought my kids rain boots this year. I know it was unnecessary, but they make me happy. I don’t spend money frivolously like that often–I’m frugal to a fault most of the time–but they were calling to me. I mean, how cute are those jagged fins on the back? Partly, it was an attempt to make them more independent in getting their shoes on. Partly, it was because I just really wanted to take pictures of them tromping around in their adorable boots. It’s form meets function at its greatest.

And what follows rain? If we’re lucky, a rainbow! Aren’t rainbows just magical? There’s something amazing about the beauty of all those colors after a dark and foreboding storm.

The joy I get from colorful rainbows was the inspiration for today’s activity. We have been going on scavenger hunts ever since Little Man (now 5) started to walk. It’s always been a great way to get out of the house and encourage my kids to get some exercise without them focusing on how far we are walking. For some reason, they can run around the house for an hour, but as soon as we get a block or two from home on a walk, I start hearing, “I’m tired!” or “I’m thirsty! When are we going to be done?”

Especially this time of year when we’ve spent a lot of time during the winter indoors, my boys need a little motivation to increase their endurance.

Hence, we started doing scavenger hunts. I’ve shared several fun and free printable scavenger hunts in the past, and today I have another winner for you–perfect for springtime…

a rainbow color scavenger hunt!

We packed a picnic lunch on a nice day and did our hunt at a local community garden, but your could do this anywhere…even in your own house if you’re getting more rain than rainbows right now. Just try to pick a place that has LOTS of colors to point out and discuss.

Bonus points if you can find all the colors in nature. I think it’s great for kids to recognize that the natural world has a lot of variety and beauty to offer.

For my oldest (who is five), I encouraged him to draw a picture of the items he found for each color. He took the challenge very seriously, as you can tell…My three-year-old just scribbled with the color of pencil that matched the box, but he loved running around and hunting for the colors. (P.S. – Don’t you just love how his shoes aren’t even on in this picture? I had to remind him several times to put his boots back on. Kids are funny sometimes.)All in all, it was a great way to get outside and enjoy a sunny spring day together.

Wanna go hunting with us?

Download your free printable scavenger hunt here.

Rainbow Color Scavenger Hunt

WHAT WE’RE LEARNING:

• color identification
• matching
• critical thinking skills (compare/contrast)

MATERIALS NEEDED:

• Printable scavenger hunt page
• Crayons, colored pencils, or markers in assorted colors (these are FABULOUS)
• a colorful location

DIRECTIONS:

1. First, talk about colors with your child. What colors do you see in the room around you? What is your favorite color? You could even read a book about colors. This is one of our favorites…you can’t go wrong with monsters. 🙂
2. Show your child the scavenger hunt, and identify all the colors on the page.
3. Explain to your child that you’re going to go hunting for colors. Challenge your child to make their page as colorful as possible.
4. Head outside, to a museum, or even just hunt around your home. Have your child look for something that matches each color on the page and DRAW it!
5. Encourage your child to pay attention to which shade of a given color they see, and pick a colored pencil/marker that matches the best. This is a great opportunity to talk about hues, especially with older kiddos. Is it royal blue? Sky blue? Teal?
6. For little ones, let them draw the color as best they can–scribbles are totally acceptable.

When you’re done, you could talk about your favorite colors, and any other observations you’ve made during the activity.

Want more rainbow activities? Here are some of our favorites:

• The sneaky leprechaun game
• Rainbow math game
• Build a LEGO rainbow
• Rainbow science jar (exploring density)
• Froot Loop rainbow