Colour By Code Worksheets for Teachers
Bring printable colour by numbers, letters and more foundational concepts into your classroom with fun worksheets created by teachers for teachers.
This collection of Australian curriculum-aligned teaching resources is designed to add an engaging element to your worksheets for maths, science, English and more! Best of all, each printable has been carefully reviewed and selected by an expert on the Teach Starter teaching team, so you know it's ready for your classroom, your lesson plans and your students!
Not familiar with the term colour by code, or just looking for some fresh ideas to use these worksheets in the classroom? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is a Colour By Code Worksheet?
Haven't heard the term colour by code? That's OK! Maybe you've heard of colour by numbers or colouring by maths? Or maybe you call them mystery picture worksheets?
These fun worksheets allow students to pull out their crayons or coloured pencils to colour a picture based on a predetermined colour key or code, where each colour corresponds to a specific number or symbol. The goal is to match the numbers or symbols on the picture with the corresponding colours to reveal a mystery picture.
Colour by code refers to not just colour by numbers but also colour by parts of speech, synonyms, addition and other educational concepts!
History of Colour by Numbers
Ever wonder how colouring by numbers became so popular?
The exact history of these sheets is hard to track down, but as far back as the early 20th century, people were 'painting by number' as a recreational activity. Then an activity mainly for adults, it involved painting pre-drawn canvases with numbered sections that corresponded to specific paint colours.
In the 1950s, an American artist called Dan Robbins developed a commercial version of the concept called 'Paint by Numbers' that helped the idea go mainstream and give life to what we now call colour by numbers in schools! His kits included pre-printed canvases, numbered paints and brushes, and his idea was soon adapted to make colouring books for kids.
In the versions for kids, numbers or symbols were added to line drawings instead of canvases, and young children could easily colour within the lines using crayons or coloured pencils!
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 2, 3, 5, 10 Multiplication
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 5 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Plus Plan
Scarecrow Division Colour by Number Worksheet
Have fun with your Halloween maths practice with a division colour-by-number worksheet!
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 6 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Plus Plan
3 States of Matter - I Spy Worksheets
Recognise examples of solids, liquids, and gases with a pack of printable States of Matter I Spy Worksheets!
- Plus Plan
Multiplication With Equal Groups – Colour by Number Worksheet
Guide your students to determine a multiplication problem for an equal groups model with this colour-by-number worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Adding within 1000 Mystery Image Reveal Worksheet
Practise using the bar model to work out addition sums within 1000 with this fun mystery picture reveal activity.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 9 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Plus Plan
Firetruck Colour By Number Worksheet
Build number identification skills with a printable Firetruck Colour by Number Worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - Subtraction Task Cards
Practice subtracting single and double-digit numbers with a set of subtraction colour by number task cards.
- Plus Plan
Measuring Angles – Mystery Picture Worksheet
Find the measure of each angle and use the colour guide to reveal a mystery picture with this worksheet designed for year 5 students.
- Plus Plan
Crazy Boxes – 2, 3, 5, 10 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 2, 3, 5 and 10 times tables.
- Plus Plan
Colour By Code - Simple or Compound Sentence Worksheet
Use a Colour By Code Simple or Compound Sentence worksheet to help your students practise identifying simple and compound sentence types.
- Plus Plan
Colour By Code Worksheet- Time to 5 Minutes
Practise telling time to the nearest five minutes with a fun Colour By Code worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Dot Day Colour By Number Printable - Upper Years
Integrate Dot Day concepts into your maths lessons with printable Dot Day Multiplication and Division colour-by-number worksheets.
- Free Plan
Colour the Synonyms and Antonyms Worksheet
Explore vocabulary with this synonyms and antonyms worksheet for Year 4 students.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 8 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Plus Plan
Parts of Speech Colouring Activity - Back to School
Use this Parts of Speech Colouring Activity as a back to school review activity with your students.
- Plus Plan
Fractions Greater Than 1 Worksheet Pack (Colour-by-Number)
Use our Fractions Greater Than 1 Worksheet Pack to give your students a fun way to practise converting between improper fractions and mixed numbers.
- Plus Plan
Rounding Decimals Mystery Picture Worksheet
Round decimals to the nearest whole, tenth, hundredth and thousandth while revealing a mystery image with a fun colour-by-number worksheet.
- Free Plan
Living or Non-living? Colour by Code Worksheet
Practise identifying living and non-living things with this colour-by-code worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number - 7 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
- Free Plan
Colour by Number – Repeated Addition
An engaging activity to prepare students for understanding the concept of multiplication.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Parts of Speech Worksheet – Chameleon
Practise your parts of speech lesson by colouring nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions and pronouns on the chameleon.
- Plus Plan
Reading Colours Ordinal Numbers Worksheet
Consolidate reading colours and ordinal numbers with this worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Frog in a Pond - Colour by Numbers
Colour by numbers is a fun and easy way to help students recognise digits.
- Plus Plan
Alphabet Sounds Worksheets
Explore alphabet beginning sounds with this set of alphabet sounds worksheets to develop letter recognition.
- Plus Plan
Colour by Letter Worksheet Pack (SATPIN)
Help students with their recognition of the letters – s,a,t,p,i,n with this colour by letter worksheet pack.
- Plus Plan
Weathering, Erosion and Deposition Colour By Code Worksheet
Guide your students to differentiate between examples of weathering, erosion and deposition with this colour-by-code science worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Spooky Subtraction Colour by Number - Worksheet
Bring some spooky maths fun into the classroom with a Halloween colour-by-number worksheet focused on subtracting four-digit numbers.
- Plus Plan
Subtraction within 20 - Colour-by-Number Worksheet
Reveal the mystery picture by solving the subtraction problems with a colour-by-number worksheet.
- Free Plan
Colour by Factor – Worksheet
Solve missing factor equations and colour a picture according to a colour-by-number guide.