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
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.
- Plus Plan
Firefighter Colour By Number Worksheet - Hundreds Chart
Print the perfect maths activity to accompany your fire safety lessons with a printable firefighter colour-by-number worksheet
- 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
Five Senses Colouring Worksheets
Help your students understand more about their senses with a pack of printable 5 Senses colouring worksheets.
- 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
Number Recognition 0-5 Colour-by-Number Pack
Practise number recognition with this colour-by-number activity pack! Students colour varied representations of the numbers 0-5 to solidify their understanding.
- Plus Plan
Time to the Minute - Colour by Code Worksheet
Practise how to tell time to the minute with a fun Colour in Maths 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
Colour by Number - Numbers 0-9
An engaging activity to consolidate your students’ recognition of one-digit numbers.
- Plus Plan
Multiples of 2 — Fact Fluency Pack
Build multiples of 2 fact fluency with this engaging worksheet pack, designed to help teachers strengthen multiplication recall through a variety of purposeful, low-prep activities.
- 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
Time to 5 Minutes- Colour By Code Worksheet
Tell time to the nearest five minutes and have fun with a Telling Time Colour By Code Worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Adding and Subtracting Decimals – Differentiated Mystery Image Worksheets
Have students practise adding and subtracting decimals with this mystery image worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Real-World 3D Objects - Colouring Worksheet
Explore three-dimensional objects in the real world with this colouring worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Equivalent Fractions – Mystery Picture Worksheet
Determine equivalent fractions while using the colour guide to reveal a mystery image.
- 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.
- Plus Plan
Multiplication Mystery Picture - Ice Cream
Use the colour-coded multiplication guide to complete the grid and reveal a mystery picture.
- Plus Plan
Firetruck Colour By Number Worksheet
Build number identification skills with a printable Firetruck Colour by Number Worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Halloween Shapes - Colour By 2D Shapes Worksheet
Don’t get too spooked while trying to identify 2D shapes with a printable Halloween Shapes Colour by Code worksheet!
- Plus Plan
Colour by Number – Repeated Addition and Multiplication
Guide your students to connect repeated addition with multiplication by completing this colour-by-code multiplication worksheet.
- 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
Homophone Mandala Flower Worksheets
Have your students create a colourful mandala flower while simultaneously demonstrating their understanding of common homophones.
- Plus Plan
Scarecrow Division Colour by Number Worksheet
Have fun with your Halloween maths practice with a division 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
Subtraction Across Zero - Colour By Number Worksheet
Practise subtraction across zeros with a fun colour-by-number worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Colour By Plural Suffix Worksheet
Reveal the hidden picture and practise using the inflectional endings -s, -es, -ies, and -ves with a colour-by-code worksheet.
- Plus Plan
Parts of Speech Word Search (Nouns, Adjectives and Verbs) – Worksheet
A word search where students find and categorise nouns, adjectives and verbs.
- Plus Plan
Hundreds Board Mystery Picture Division Task Cards
A set of 32 activity task cards that require students to complete division problems and colour in a hundreds chart to reveal a mystery picture.
- Plus Plan
Initial Letter Colouring Worksheet
Identify the first letter for each picture and then colour it in.
- Plus Plan
Letter, Word or Sentence Activity Pack
Support young learners as they develop foundational literacy skills with this simple, hands‑on Letter, Word or Sentence Activity Pack.
- 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.