The Colour Monster

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It’s not always easy to articulate our emotions, even at the best of times. COVID-19 has stirred them up good and proper (as they say here in Dorset). Introduce the story, ‘The Colour Monster’ by Anna Llenas or listen to it being read here. There are some questions in the clip after the story which might help to scaffold a discussion around the story. Read The Color Monster book to students. Take another look through the book – noticing the color used to represent each emotion and how the illustrator use texture and imagery to represent each emotion? Talk about feelings and what the kids associate with these. Ask them what color they see when they feel happy etc. Then explain to them that this confused color monster has decided to make his feelings certain colors to make it easier for him to understand. He needs help from them to remember all these colors. So if they could color all the emotions and the colors on the jars the same color as in the story, he would be a very happy monster! The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas (Templar 2016) is described by Book Trust as ‘ [d]eceptively simple, surprisingly powerful and satisfyingly reassuring’. A book about feelings - and colours - it features a friendly, fuzzy monster. You know, the kind you’d find inhabiting Sesame Street. (Come to think of it, he does resemble Oscar the Grouch with that big, animated monobrow!)

Color Recognition is an important concept to master in the younger learning years. Children at this age are still in the process of putting words to the different things they see around them. And everything they see has color! Everything they feel is still a bit difficult to express though, and these two activities will help them to realize that they are not the only ones that are a little confused. A certain monster needs their help! How does music make you feel? Think of different songs/styles of music that make you happy, sad, angry etc. Inside: This free, printable The Color Monster Emotions Activity is a fabulous activity for developing emotional intelligence with children in the early grades. Make a list of words that the author links with each colour, e.g. yellow = bright and light, blue = gentle and alone. Can you think of synonyms for these words? If you are looking for some engaging and hands-on printables to make learning about colors and emotions so much more fun, you have come to the right place! ‘The Color Monster’ by Anna Llenas is a great book to help little learners make more sense of all those feelings they feel, by connecting them with a more concrete thing – colors.

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Experimenting with and mixing paint is such a fun and concrete way for the little thinkers to learn about primary and secondary colors. What you need: Invite the children to discuss their feelings. Sometimes we can feel a bit mixed up like the Colour Monster. It might help to have a friend, older brother or sister or a trusted adult help the child to sort out their feelings at those times, just like the Colour Monster and the little girl. Talk about the things which make the children feel happy, sad, angry, fearful and calm and loved. As an extension activity, the discussion could also focus on what things help when they are feeling sad, afraid or angry.

So it came as no surprise to read that The Colour Monster’s creator, Anna Llenas, cites her art psychotherapy training as an influence. Llenas ‘currently acts as a teacher and art therapist specialising in art and emotional education.’ Her experience in these fields shines through her work - and makes The Colour Monster a valuable addition for any bookshelf.

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Explain to the children that the color monster is a bit confused. He has only 3 colors, which are red, blue and yellow, but he needs orange, purple and green to try and make sense of all those other feelings he feels. What should he do? Llenas’s art is so expressive - childlike in its simplicity and sheer exuberance, with intensely scribbled crayon marks and wild brush strokes. It’s a joy to behold! We are long time fans of The Color Monster book by Anna Llena– with it featuring on our 21 Best Books about Feelings and Emotions and 101 Social Skills Books for Kids booklists and one of our earliest Social Emotional Learning posts – 4 Ways to Boost Your Child’s Emotional Intelligence. At the start of the story, the Colour Monster is feeling confused. When have you felt confused? What did you do in this situation? What can we do when we feel confused in the future? It is a fabulous book for initiating social emotional learning activities with children in the early grades and the basis for this fun social emotional learning activity. The Color Monster Emotions Activity: Free Printable Prepare the activity