Pancake: Colour Mixing Experiment Activity | EYFS & KS1 Printables

Early Years (EYFS & KS1) Pancake Day Activity: Colour Mixing Experiment Template

Turn your Pancake Day celebrations into a vibrant science and art lesson with our Pancake: Colour Mixing Experiment Activity! These engaging printables are perfect for EYFS and KS1 children, providing a hands-on and delicious-looking way to explore the fascinating world of colour theory.

Designed for Preschool, Nursery, School, or for Parents and Childminders at home, each sheet features three blank pancakes, clearly labelled 'First Colour', 'Second Colour', and 'Mixture Colour' respectively. This simple yet effective layout guides children through the exciting process of primary and secondary colour creation.

How the experiment works: Children will select two 'First Colours' (e.g., yellow and red) and paint them onto the first and second pancakes. Then, comes the magic! They'll mix those two colours together and paint the resulting 'Mixture Colour' (e.g., orange) onto the third pancake. You can encourage children to repeat this for various mixtures, creating a captivating 'Colour Mixing' display that showcases their discoveries!

(Note: Please use your own discretion and knowledge of your children to ensure appropriateness of each activity suggested on this page and safety concerning any materials given and activity undertaken.)

• 💡 How to use this resource in your classroom/setting

  Our Pancake: Colour Mixing Experiment Activity is incredibly versatile and can be used in a multitude of ways across various early years and KS1 environments:

  • Preschool, Nursery & Childminder Settings:

    • Guided Exploration: Provide small pots of primary coloured paints (red, yellow, blue) and guide children through mixing simple combinations.

    • Sensory Experience: Focus on the process of mixing the paints, discussing how they feel and change.

    • Vocabulary: Introduce and repeat terms like 'mix', 'blend', 'primary colours', and the names of the secondary colours they create.

  • Reception Class (EYFS):

    • Structured Experiment: Encourage children to predict what colour they think they will make before mixing.

    • Fine Motor Development: The act of painting within the pancake outlines and mixing paints helps to refine fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

    • Display Creation: Once dry, combine all the children's sheets to create a colourful and informative 'Pancake Colour Mixing' display in your art area or on the wall.

  • KS1 Classes (Year 1 & Year 2 School):

    • Scientific Inquiry: Discuss the concept of primary and secondary colours more formally. Ask children to record their predictions and results.

    • Art Theory: Explore how artists use colour, and the mood or feeling different colours can evoke.

    • Written Reflection: Children can write a sentence or two on each sheet describing their experiment: "I mixed yellow and red, and I made orange!"

    • Extension: Challenge children to try mixing secondary colours to see what new shades they can create (e.g., orange and green).

• 🎯 Learning objectives covered - 🐣 EYFS Framework

  EYFS Framework:

  • Expressive Arts and Design: Children explore and use a range of media and materials, specifically paint. They experiment with colour, design, and technique, and develop their own ideas through the process of colour mixing.

  • Physical Development (Fine Motor Skills): Holding and manipulating paintbrushes, controlling paint, and mixing colours helps to strengthen hand muscles and refine hand-eye coordination.

  • Understanding the World (The World / Materials): Children observe how materials (paints) change when combined, fostering early scientific thinking.

  • Mathematics (Pattern - indirectly): Observing and creating predictable outcomes with colour mixtures.

• 🎯 Learning objectives covered - 🐤 KS1 Curriculum

  KS1 Curriculum:

  • Art and Design: Children develop a wide range of art and design techniques in using colour. They learn to mix colours to create new colours (e.g., primary to secondary). They use painting to explore their ideas and record their experiences.

  • Science (Working Scientifically / Materials): Children conduct a simple experiment, observe changes, and record results. They explore the properties of materials (paint) and how they can be changed.

  • English (Spoken Language / Writing): Opportunities for children to describe their process, explain their findings, and use new vocabulary (e.g., 'primary', 'secondary', specific colour names).

Download our Pancake: Colour Mixing Experiment Activity today and add a vibrant, hands-on twist to your Pancake Day celebrations and art lessons!

⬅️ PANCAKE DAY Topic Page

⬅️ FOOD Topic Page

⬅️ FESTIVALS & CELEBRATIONS Menu Page

📌 related Printable Early Years resources

Fancy browsing some more of our early years printable resources?

EYFS & KS1 themes & topics you may be interested in

Explore more captivating EYFS and KS1 educational activities and printable packs covering various popular themes and topics for your classroom, setting or home learning.

Alternatively, SEARCH ‘LITTLE OWLS Resources’ for printable educational materials USING THE MENU BUTTONS below…

Please use the following buttons to explore our wealth of teaching and learning resources; perfect for use with your early years (EYFS and KS1) children.