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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Colour by Number - 7 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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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 – 10 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 10 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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Colour by Parts of Speech - Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives and Prepositions - Owl
Consolidate parts of speech by colouring nouns, verbs, adjectives and prepositions on the owl.
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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.
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Colour by Parts of Speech Worksheet – Toucan
Consolidate your parts of speech lesson by colouring nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, prepositions and adverbs on the toucan.
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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.
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Initial Letter Colouring Worksheet
Identify the first letter for each picture and then colour it in.
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States of Matter - Colour by Code Worksheet
Engage your students and have fun identifying the states of matter with a colour-by-code 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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Diphthong Colouring Activity Worksheets
Practise finding different vowel team diphthongs with this set of fun colour-by-code worksheets for your students.
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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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Scarecrow Division Colour by Number Worksheet
Have fun with your Halloween maths practice with a division colour-by-number worksheet!
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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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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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Colour the Periodic Table - Worksheet and Poster
Colour the periodic table with a printable colour-coding 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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Colour by Syllable Type - Worksheet
Practise identifying the six syllable types in common words with this colour-coding activity.
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Halloween Division Mystery Picture - Multi-Digit
Have a bit of Halloween maths fun with a division colour by number 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 - 11 x Multiplication Facts
An engaging activity to consolidate your students' understanding of multiplication facts.
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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 – 6 Times Tables
A fun multiplication worksheet where students create a colour pattern using 6 times tables.
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Colour By Code Worksheet- Time to 5 Minutes
Practise telling time to the nearest five minutes with a fun Colour By Code worksheet.
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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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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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Real-World 3D Objects - Colouring Worksheet
Explore three-dimensional objects in the real world with this colouring worksheet.
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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.