English Teaching

Colours All Around: English for Young Learners New to a Country

⏱ 5 MIN · CEFR A1

Colours All Around: English for Young Learners

🌈 From my notebook:

My daughter is learning two languages at the same time — French from her mother, English from me, and Créole from the island she was born on. She points at things and we both name them. ‘Red!’ I say. ‘Rouge!’ her mother says. She looks between us, grins, and says both. Children learn colour words first because the world is full of evidence.

🎯 By the end you will:

  • Name 8 colours in English
  • Use ‘What colour is it? / It is ___’
  • Describe objects using colour
🔴 red
🟠 orange
🟡 yellow
🟢 green
🔵 blue
🟣 purple
⚪ white
⚫ black
🧠 Grammar: adjective before noun

In English, adjectives (like colours) come BEFORE the noun:
a red apple (not: an apple red)
a blue sky (not: a sky blue)
This is different from French (un ciel bleu) and many other languages.

✅ Quick check: Where does the colour adjective go in English?

✍️ Activity for kids (2 min):

🎨 Look around the room. Find something for each colour. Say: The ____ is ____.
Can you find something purple? Something orange? Race with a partner!

💡 Teacher’s tip (TPR):

Total Physical Response: say a colour, students touch something that colour. Fast, energetic, zero preparation needed. Move around the room — energy = retention for young learners.

English language content. Not a substitute for qualified instruction.