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!
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Comparing Decimals – Colour by Number Worksheet
Compare decimals and create a beautiful stained-glass picture with this colour-by-number worksheet.
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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.
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Colour by Sight Words - 6 Words - Snake
Practise sight words for kindergarten and more with a printable color by sight word worksheet.
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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.
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Halloween Colour by Number - Double Digit Multiplication Worksheets
Practise multiplying by double digits with a pair of engaging Halloween colour-by-number worksheets.
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Colour by Number - Mixed 1 - 12 Division
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of division facts.
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Colour By 3D Objects - Worksheet
Practise identifying 3D objects and their attributes with a printable code-based colouring task!
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100th Day Mystery Picture Worksheets
Follow the colour-coded number guides to fill in the hundreds chart square and reveal 3 special 100th Day of School mystery pictures.
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Mental Maths Addition and Subtraction - Colour By Number
Build confidence with mental maths addition and subtraction through an engaging colour‑by‑number activity.
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Crazy Boxes – 4 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 4 times tables.
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Roll and Colour Worksheet - One More, One Less
An interactive worksheet to practise finding the number that is 1 more and 1 less than a given number.
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Reading Colours Ordinal Numbers Worksheet
Consolidate reading colours and ordinal numbers with this worksheet.
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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.
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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.
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Colour by Pronouns Worksheet Pack
Use this set of colour-by-pronouns worksheets to help your students learn these important parts of speech.
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Halloween Area and Perimeter Colour by Number Worksheet
Use these Halloween colour-by-number worksheets to practise identifying the perimeter and area of regular polygons.
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Batty for 2D Shapes - Halloween Shapes Worksheet
Go batty and identify the 2D shapes with a printable Halloween Shapes worksheet.
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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.
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Subtraction Across Zero - Colour By Number Worksheet
Practise subtraction across zeros with a fun colour-by-number worksheet.
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Real-World 3D Objects - Colouring Worksheet
Explore three-dimensional objects in the real world with this colouring worksheet.
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Grammar Grid Colour by Code - Easter Parts of Speech Worksheet
Follow the colour-coded parts of speech guide to fill in the word grid and reveal a mystery image.
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Colour by Number Worksheet - Multiplication Facts (Rabbit)
Bring some colourful fun into your maths lessons with a multiplication colour by number worksheet.
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Colour It! Need or Want Worksheet
Identify examples of needs and wants with this colour-coding activity.
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Living or Non-living? Colour by Code Worksheet
Practise identifying living and non-living things with this colour-by-code worksheet.
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Multiplication Mystery Picture - Ice Cream
Use the colour-coded multiplication guide to complete the grid and reveal a mystery picture.
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Colour by Number - 12 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
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Colour by Number - 7 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
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Parts of Speech Word Search (Nouns, Adjectives and Verbs) – Worksheet
A word search where students find and categorise nouns, adjectives and verbs.
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Crazy Boxes – 4, 6, 7, 8 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 4, 6, 7 and 8 times tables.
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Crazy Boxes – 9 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 9 times tables.
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Crazy Boxes – 10 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 10 times tables.
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The Number of Days in Each Month - Colour By Code
Help your students remember the number of days in each month with a colour-by-code worksheet.