Searching for Colors with the Just Colors App

Searching for Colors with the Just Colors App

Many apps are designed to help children learn their colors. They show the color and then provide images of objects containing that color. While Just Colors, also known as Learn Your Colors, by Appracadabra has many of the same features as a traditional coloring-learning app, it takes the learning a step further. In addition to seeing colors and objects containing those colors in the app, children are encouraged to find the colors in their surroundings.

Taking Color Pictures

Just Colors is a fairly simple app. Children see a screen full of a color and hear the name of the color spoken aloud. Swipe to the next screen and they see a picture containing that color. However, where most apps would just show clipart or a cartoonish image containing the color, Just Colors shows actual photographs.

In the right hand corner of the screen is a picture of the camera. Clicking on the camera takes children to a screen where they can take their own photograph(s) of the color as it appears in their surroundings. The photographs children take are then added to the children’s color scrapbook. Whenever they return to the app, they will see their photographs alongside the specific color they contain.

While this feature is unique and encourages children to make connections between the colors in the app and their own environments, it does have a couple of downsides. First, the app does not determine whether the pictures children take actually contain the identified color. Any photo a child takes while in the app is added to the sequence, so when children hear the color pink, they could potentially scroll through related photographs that do not actually contain anything pink.

Second, some of the colors are very specific and may not be easily found in the child’s environment. The app does not just use colors such as red, green, blue and pink. It also introduces children to colors such as wine red and olive green which may be difficult for children to find. Thankfully, choosing the “some colors” option from the settings menu reduces the colors shown in the app to more basic colors children are likely to easily find.

An Energetic App

The settings menu also has options for turning off the speech, music and pictures within the app, however without these options, the app is fairly bland. Children will enjoy listening to the upbeat music as they scroll through the color pictures and will appreciate the voice naming the colors as they appear. While colors such as red, orange and blue are easy for children to identify, if you choose the setting for more colors, you will especially want to leave the voice on because many of the colors will be difficult for children to identify on their own.

In general, the app offers a unique way for children to learn their colors. You can pull out the app during walk around the neighborhood or while in the grocery store and challenge your child to find as many examples of the color as possible. Once back at home, your child will enjoy reliving your outings and reinforcing her knowledge of colors by scrolling through her color scrapbook in the app.

All images from Just Colors

By Stacy Zeiger
Stacy Zeiger is an 8th grade English teacher, writer and mother of two who holds a B.A. in English and M.Ed. in Secondary Education from Ohio State University.