The COLOR Program opens the discussion to the socio-cultural perspective behind colours. The two modules approach the subject from vastly different perspectives and use special learning probes tailored to the topic. In “Colour Stories”, a deck of interactive cards, activable with water, reveals a broader knowledge of the colours around us. While in “Colour Language”, a true story of a culture with no words for colours coupled with playable booklets teaches an alternative way to describe colour through its context.

The main goal for The COLOR Program was to help children see colours beyond their mere labels. It all started from the discovery of a culture from the Candoshi Tribe that have no words for colour.

Through my research, it came to light that the concept of "colour" is largely a cultural phenomenon. In other words, society shapes the way we perceive and think about colour. Yet at a young age, we are taught to accept colour for what it is – red, yellow and blue, instead of thinking critically about colour.

By helping people to experience the cultural identity of colour, we can perhaps derive a positive benefit from such an engagement. The COLOR Program was thus developed. By exposing children to the social dimension of colours, the program inspires them to rediscover the colours of the world.

Module 1: Colour Stories

With the help of water, let’s uncover colour facts that marvel the mind, and delight the sights, by seeing how colour has seeped into our culture over time.

Learning Objectives

1. Understand the history behind some yellow objects

2. Think critically of the colours around them

3. Understand that colour can have a social dimension

Witness Colour Magic

This interaction is a novel effect that is the first of its kind commercially – upon dripping water onto the card, the hidden colour reveals itself. This nifty trick helps hook children’s interest in the subject by creating wonder and mystery.

Discuss the Evidence

Uncover the backstory of colours and the effects culture has on our perception of them. Complex social discussions, such as understanding cultural differences with other countries, will be introduced to students along the way. This novel interaction will make academic domains, like Science and Humanities, more exciting for kids.

Module 2: Colour Language

What if there was a world with no words for colours? Unlearn what you have been taught about red, to relearn from another – the Candoshi’s culture with no words for colours.

Learning Objectives

1. Be aware that colours can be perceived differently

2. Freely associate between what they see and what they know

3. Understand that colour can be contextual

Disguise as Them

Children are made to immerse themselves in the Candoshi’s world to experience an alternative way to describe colour through its context. Through the use of playable booklets, children disguise themselves as a Candoshi while documenting their creative imagination.

In the process, children will be engaged in free associative thinking which is a part of the creative process. Free association allows children to use imagination to spontaneously transform perceptions into new mental constructions, creating personal meanings that align with previous experience. Through this exercise, children can develop their object association skills by making more meaningful connections with their environment.

Showcase your Findings

Putting up their booklets for display, a gallery walk is used to showcase their creative imaginations. Besides learning by doing, being able to share and present your ideas are also important skills for children to learn. From the gallery walk, children will realise how diverse a colour in context can be. A single red circle/square could generate a quantity of ideas simply by seeing it in its context.

The program underwent a trial with a local Primary school, involving 14 teachers and 452 students. Feedbacks provided by participants in the post-survey were generally positive. More than 80% of the students indicated that they enjoyed the programme. 93.8% of teachers understood the instructions for the cards and 87.5% of teachers enjoyed playing with the cards.

Activities of the COLOR program can take place individually with a child or with a class in an educational setting.

COLOR is available for purchase here.

This project was awarded with the Golden Pin Design Award 2022.