53+ of the Best Rainbow Unit Study Resources
Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. It seems like my kids have been singing this sweet little tune every day for months now! The rain started in our part of the world and it just hasn’t let up. Instead of dwelling on the dreary, we decided to look forward to the new growth and the beautiful rainbows that will result from the weeks of downpour. In March, we will focus our homeschool to a rainbow unit study to help the kids understand rainbow color sequencing, primary colors, color mixing, and how rainbows form!
Rainbow Unit Study Resources + Ideas
There are so many options when it comes to composing a Rainbow Unit Study and that can be a bit overwhelming SO I put together this list of my FAVORITE rainbow-themed toys, games, crafts, activities, books, printables, videos, and ideas just for you!
Teach Art, Math, Science, Writing, and More with a Rainbow Unit Study
You aren’t limited to only teaching colors an light when you study the rainbow. Here are a few ideas of how to teach multiple subjects with a central rainbow theme! Keep scrolling to the next section for links to more projects and additional rainbow unit study resources.
Teach Art by:
- Painting, drawing, or coloring a rainbow
- Making 3D Rainbow Art
- Building a rainbow with modeling clay or play dough
- Creating rainbow paper crafts
- Making rainbow shaving cream art
Teach Math by:
- Counting and sorting rainbow colored beads
- Working on rainbow math printable sheets
- Making a rainbow “Bonds to Ten” craft
Teach Science by:
- Completing a rainbow density layers activity
- Making a Walking Rainbow
- Building a Spectroscope
- Using acrylic prisms to help your child see how rainbow are created by letting them create their own.
Teach Writing by:
- Using Rainbow-themed writing prompts
- Playing Rainbow Roll & Write
- Writing the Rainbow for Writing Organization
Teach Reading by:
- Find colorful books at your local library for your rainbow unit study. You can also purchase books from Amazon or Usborne to teach your child more about the colors of the rainbow. My FAVORITE is the Big Book of Colors.
Build Fine Motor Skills by:
- Using a rainbow stacking toy to help your child learn size comparisons (larger, smaller, etc) and to increase find motor skills.
- Using rainbow sorting toys
- Threading rainbow colored pasta
- Making a rainbow salt tray
Rainbow Unit Study Toys
Wooden Rainbow Stacker– Grimm’s Rainbow Stacker is the overall favorite, but we ordered a handmade wooden rainbow stacker from a lovely little Etsy shop called Woodpecker for Kids:):)
Acrylic Prisms– You can use glass prisms as well and they may actually work a little better , but I like to use acrylic prisms to avoid the risk of them shattering in the hands of toddlers and preschoolers.
Rainbow Stacking Boxes– The kids love stacking and nesting these rainbow colored boxes!
Rainbow Magnets– My kiddos would not put these rainbow magnets down during our rainbow unit study…as you can see, the red one is missing in this photo because my daughter wouldn’t give it back to mommy 🙂 I cut up some primary color pipe cleaners and placed them in the jelly jar beside the magnets. The kids can use the magnets to move the pipe cleaners up and down the jar.
Rainbow Ribbons– Your kids can dance and spin with these rainbow colored ribbons and you can create a color matching game for them as they play.
Grimm’s Rainbow Sorting Bowls– I love wooden toys. They are so much more durable than plastic…especially with my wild children! This wooden sorting bowl set will help your kids learn their colors while working on fine motor skills.
Rainbow Unit Study Games
Color Wheel Bingo– This is a simple and beautiful game that teaches children primary colors and common objects & animals. The game includes Bingo boards, punch out objects with a specific color (ex. yellow duck), and a color spinner.
Learning Resources Smart Snacks Rainbow Color Cones Game
ColorKu– This game is similar to Sudoku, but it uses colors instead of numbers to solve the puzzles.
Pengoloo Wooden Memory Color Recognition Game
Learning Resources Color Cubed Strategy Game-This game helps kids strengthen their spatial and strategic thinking skills by matching color and position of each cube.
Rainbow Crafts & Activities
Rainbow Crystals– Grow your own rainbow colored crystals with this fun projects!
Rainbow Sensory Bin– Use small colorful toys and objects for a sensory bin. We used dyed rice to make our sensory bin during our rainbow unit study.
Walking Rainbow Water– This is a neat activity that will teach your kids about capillary action and about rainbow colors at the same time!
Homemade Spectroscope– Make a spectroscope out of household items so your kids can have their own personal “rainbow maker”!
Exploring Prisms– My kids LOVE playing with their acrylic prisms. They have learned how to hold the prisms perfectly to create a rainbow. See the link for more prism activities.
Rainbow Books
Big Book of Colors– This book is ah-ma-zing! It has a moveable color wheel in the front, primary and interesting color shades on each page, and a color mixing activity in the back.
Rainbow (Weather Ready-to-Reads)
Rainbow Printables
Colors of the Rainbow Printable– I created this rainbow printable for children to use during a rainbow unit study as a visual reminder of the acronym ROYGBIV to help them memorize the sequence of rainbow colors.
Color Wheel Printable– I printed this one and placed it in a picture frame to hang above our rainbow shelf.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow Printable– This print is also hanging above our rainbow shelf.
Rainbow Color by Number– This sheet is kept in a tray with rainbow colored pencils.
English & Spanish Colors Printable– more colors are included in this printable, but I chose to only cut & laminate the colors of the rainbow. I punched holes in the top & bottom and ran twine through each one to create a hanging color card section beside our rainbow shelf.
Rainbow Videos
The Science of Light and Color for Kids: Rainbows and the Electromagnetic Spectrum – FreeSchool
How is a Rainbow Formed- Peekaboo Kids
How to Draw a Rainbow Coloring Pages | Art Colours for Children
>>MORE UNIT STUDY IDEAS<<
- One Week of Homeschool Astronomy Projects
- 30+ of the Best Dairy Unit Study Resources
- 15 Best Children’s Dairy Animal Books
- St. Patrick’s Day Handprint Craft – Do this if you are doing your rainbow unit study around St. Patrick’s Day.
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neat ways to study rainbows. 🙂
This is such a fun idea!!! I’ll have to try this with my little one. Awesome post.
OMG Amazing work i love this article keep it up thanks for share such kind of nice information with us,Please don’t stop posting keep it up.
Excellent. Absolutely loved reading and very helpful at the same time 🙂
WOW! The ideas are awesome I’m looking forward to using shaving cream and books to teach my kid about it, It would be exciting, thanks for sharing though!