THE MIXTURE OF PRIMARY COLOURS

Alumna: Lourdes Sánchez Osuna

This experimental protocol is aimed at children in the third year of the second cycle of Childhood Educaction (5 years old).

This is a simple physical experiment (mixtures).

The objectives are the following:

-          Manipulate and identificate objects, materials and tools, and also know what they are useful for.

-          Experiment the mixture of different colors in order to create others new.

-          Discover the water´s ability to dissolve some elements.

-          Show interest in participating and experimenting with water.

Parts of the experimental protocol

Concept: The mixture of primary colors.

Standards: they are related to the actions of the next point, and they are the following:

1.      1. Presentation of material

Firstly, I present to the children all the materials with whom we are going to work: water, food coloring of the three primary colors (red, yellow and blue), plastic glasses and small spoons. Then, in a free way, I leave them that they do comments and hypothesis about different aspects of the materials such as their functions, characteristics...

2.      2. Free experimentation

Afterwards, I leave to the children that if they want, they can observe close up and touch the material so they can make manipulations and comparisons.

3.      3. Directed experimentation

Next, the experiment begins. First, I do them a demonstration about what they have to do and I give them some indications regarding to the amount of liquid that it´s necessary to put in the glasses and also regarding to the utilization of the three colors with all their mixture possibilities. Then, it´s their turn for that they can try to do the mixtures alone. 

4.      4. Collection of conclusions

Following the previous point, now it is the moment of talking with all the children and leave them to express with respect to what they have seen and lived. We remember the process, talk and clarify doubts in relation to the process, to the results or any other issue that they have attending to various points. We say what we have discovered and all the things that we have learned, and also we say if doing this with the peers or with different materials (water and food colors) has been fun.

5.      Join collection

Finally, we clean, collect and keep all the material that we have used.

Actions: these actions would derive from the exposed standards. Each point is corresponded to the respective standards points:

1.      I show to the children the three primary colors of food coloring, and indirectly, I do them to remember and discuss about which are the primary colors (because we have already seen and worked with them in the class using finger paint and other material like crayons. Meaningful learning: I start from what children already know in order to progress in their learning). I show them the rest of materials and I leave them that they make ideas and opinions about their usefulness and location: water (we found it in the sea, in the river, in the water tap of home, in the supermarket... and it is useful for that animals and people taking off our thirst, for filling the pools, for bathing us...); plastic glasses (we found them at home, at a friend´s party... and we use them for dinking a juice, for doing a craft...) and a small spoon (we found it at home, at grandparents´ house, in the supermarket... and it is useful for moving the milk, for eating a yogurt...).

2.      Later, if someone raises in order to touch the materials and to observe their characteristics (texture, hardness...), it is the perfect moment, before beginning to perform the experiment. I leave them to familiarize and discover up close the different materials with whom they are going to work.

3.       Right after, the experiment starts. In a dynamic and funny way, I pour water by half in three glasses. In one of them, I put red coloring and I move it; in another glass, I put yellow coloring and I move it; and in a third glass, I put blue coloring and I move it. Then, I say to children:

“From all these three primary colors: red, yelow and blue, we have to obtain another three colors that would be the secondary colors. You have to be very attentive because at the end of the experiment, you have to say me what happened and what colors are the secondaries”.

After saying this, I take the glass of red color and in an empty glass, I put a little bit of water (more or less two fingers for that it isn´t too much at the end). Then, I take the glass with yellow water and I put a little with the red and I move it. From that point on, the secondary orange color appears.

Afterwards, I take the glass of yellow color and in an empty glass (as before), I put a little of water. I take the glass with the blue color, I put not much with the yellow and I move it. Later, the secondary green color appears.

As the last point, I take the glass of blue color and in an empty glass, I put a little of water. I take the glass with red water, I put nor much in the blue and I move it. Finally, the secondary purple color appears.

After doing a demonstration about they have to do, organise the children in groups of three and also share out the necessary material, it is their turn for that they prove to do it alone.

4.      After leaving the children to perform themselves the experiment, we remember all the process, we talk about the results that we have obtained (we become to the discovery and to the conclusion that the three secondary colors, that is, what are obtained and derived from the primary colors red, yellow and blue, are orange, green and purple). We solve doubts about the experiment or about another concerns that they have. We talk about whether they liked to do it with water and food coloring and also if they liked to share this experience with their peers and friends. Finally, we reinforce what we have learned remembering animals, plants, objects, fruits,... which are characterized by having some of these six colors (primary and secondary).

5.      At the end, after finishing the session, we collect, clean and keep in an orderly way all the material that we have used and also we recycle correctly that one with a single use (like napkins, plastic glasses...).