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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Trick or Treat Digraphs Worksheet
Sort Halloween Digraphs and colour them by code with a fun Halloween Phonics worksheet.
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Homophone Mandala Flower Worksheets
Have your students create a colourful mandala flower while simultaneously demonstrating their understanding of common homophones.
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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.
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Rounding Decimals – Differentiated Colour by Code Worksheet
Guide your students to round decimals to the nearest tenth and hundredth with this differentiated colour-by-code worksheet.
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Plant Adaptations - Colour by Number Worksheets
Learn about the adaptations of plants in the rainforest, tundra, and desert with colour-by-number worksheets.
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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.
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Colour by Number - Subtraction Task Cards
Practice subtracting single and double-digit numbers with a set of subtraction colour by number task cards.
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Colour By Suffix Worksheet
Reveal the hidden picture and practise using the inflectional endings -s, -es, -ies, and -ves with a colour-by-code worksheet.
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Multiplication Colour By Number Worksheet - Kangaroo
Hop your way through multiplication mastery with a multiplication colour-by-number worksheet.
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Parts of Speech - Colour by Code Mystery Picture Worksheet
Follow the colour-coded parts of speech guide to fill in the word grid and reveal a mystery image.
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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.
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100 Chart Mystery Picture Puzzle
Practise identifying numbers within 100 with this set of 44 number cards and hundreds board.
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Colour by Number - 11 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
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Colour by Number - 1 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
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Crazy Boxes – 11 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 11 times tables.
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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.
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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!
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Decimal Designs – Differentiated Decimal Rounding Worksheet
Guide your students to round decimals to different places and create a beautiful design with this differentiated worksheet.
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Bar Model Subtraction - Maths Colour By Number Worksheet
Bring some spooky maths fun into the classroom with a Halloween colour-by-number worksheet focused on subtraction using a bar model.
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Evaluate Expressions (One Variable) – Mystery Picture Worksheet
Substitute values for variables and use your understanding of the order of operations to solve expressions with this worksheet.
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Continents and Oceans - Roll and Colour Game
Learn to identify the continents and oceans of the world with an engaging partner game.
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Pop Art Products - Basketball Colour By Number Worksheet
Bring some pop art into the classroom with a multiplication colour-by-number worksheet.
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Number Recognition Worksheet - Sloth Colour-by-Number
Use the number colour coding on this colouring sheet to create a cute sloth-themed picture.
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Valentine's Mystery Picture - Multiplication Colour By Number Worksheet
Have fun with your Valentine’s Day Maths with this multiplication mystery picture worksheet.
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Colour By Vowel Sound - Winter Worksheet
Use a chilly colour by vowel sound worksheet to bring a bit of Winter into the classroom this season.
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Christmas Colouring - Simple Multiplication Colour by Number
Boost multiplication skills even at the end of a school year with this colour by number multiplication worksheet set.
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Silent Letters Worksheets - Read, Find and Colour
Identify silent letters in words with this set of three find and colour worksheets.
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Multiplication Mystery Picture (Pencil)
Use the colour-coded multiplication guide to complete the grid and reveal a mystery picture.
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Crazy Boxes – 12 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 12 times tables.
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Crazy Boxes – 7 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 7 times tables.
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Crazy Boxes – 1 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 1 times tables.
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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.