I See a Rainbow Color & Weather Science Activity

 Focus: Color recognition • States of matter • Weather basics

Objectives

Students will:

  • Identify and name basic colors.

  • Observe how temperature changes water from liquid to solid and back again.

  • Discuss how rainbows form in nature.

Materials

Lesson Plan

1. Story & Discussion

Read A Rainbow of My Own aloud.
Ask guiding questions:

  • “Which colors did you notice in the pictures?”

  • “Where have you seen a rainbow?”

  • “How do you think rainbows happen in the sky?”

Introduce the idea that we can make our own rainbow colors in class.

2. Mixing Rainbow Water

  1. Place clear pitchers of water on the table—one pitcher for each color you plan to use.

  2. Invite students to take turns adding food coloring to the pitchers.

    • Count drops aloud to practice number recognition.

    • Mix primary colors to create secondary colors if desired.

    • Observe how the water changes color.

Ask:

  • “What color did we make?”

  • “What do you think will happen if we mix these two colors?”

3. Liquid → Solid Investigation

  1. Help students pour the colored water into ice cube trays.

  2. Ask:

    • “What do you think will happen to the water in the freezer?”

    • Introduce or reinforce vocabulary: liquid, solid, freeze, melt.

  3. Place trays in the freezer.

While waiting, read more rainbow/weather books and have students draw and write a sentence about “my own rainbow.”

4. Observe the Rainbow Ice

Once frozen, pop out the colored ice cubes.
Let students:

  • Touch and observe the cubes

  • Watch the colors melt and blend

  • Compare which colors melt faster or slower

Optional extension:

  • Sort cubes by color

  • Predict what new colors will form when melted together

Teacher Tips

  • Add white paper underneath trays or bowls so melting colors are easier to observe.

  • Use this as a bridge to a weather unit—rainbows form when light bends through water droplets after rain.

  • If students taste the ice, be sure you’ve used food-safe coloring and clean materials.

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