The Rainbow Song is not only enjoyed by children who respond to the engaging and fun words and melody, teachers love it too. Why? Firstly, it teaches the colours of the rainbow in the right order, which is part of the Science national curriculum. I remember when we had to learn ‘Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain’, a song with a strong tune and easy rhymes is so much easier and a more natural way to learn. However as well as this, the Rainbow Song is welcomed by educators because it also teaches lots…

In most of the classrooms of primary schools run by creative and involved teachers, we see a riot of colourful things on the walls. Sharing and displaying the arts and crafts created in school helps children learn to take pride in their work, to understand that artistry is within us all, and that everyone’s output is unique and special. And alongside the many treasures destined for the special art wall at home in due course, many classrooms also display colourful teaching resources – posters, charts and…

A certain colour has had a lot of popular airtime recently, even if the colour mentioned isn’t technically one at all, and in the book it’s simply play on words involving a name.

Grey comes in many shades, any paint manufacturer can beat erotic novels hands-down, and neutrals remain a popular choice for interiors as well as fashions. People with cool skintones can wear grey more successfully as a rule, at least close to the face – layering with warmer shades can work well if this reflects your underlying…

I love hearing my twin granddaughters singing, and they know all about my love for colour – so of course they were proud to sing for me the new song they had learned at school. The Arthur Hamilton song ‘I Can Sing a Rainbow’ was written for the 1955 film Pete Kelly’s Blues, but made famous by Cilla Black in 1966… How strange to hear 21st century children singing these same words to their Yayah (Spanish word for Nana!), as this was the ‘rainbow song’ they had been taught at school.

But it’s all wrong! The…

How many colours are there in a rainbow? Whatever the old children’s rhyme says about purple and pink, the colours usually regarded as visible in a prism, when white light is split into it’s component parts are Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet. Generations have learned this list using mnemonics such as ‘Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain’ and others, and that does describe the order of the visible light spectrum.

But in reality, the spectrum is just that, a continuum. Light within…

When the sun is shining brightly,

And there are raindrops in the air,

Look carefully up into the sky,

You might see a rainbow there.

If you clearly see one,

It’s a gift from heaven above,

Carried by the light to you,

On the Angel’s wings of love.

It will make you smile,

Fill your heart with joy,

Seven wondrous colours,

For every girl and boy.

The whole area connecting colours with mood and behaviour can be difficult to measure effectively scientifically. Certainly the kind of quantative outputs that scientists like – measurable, repeatable effects – can be frustratingly thin on the ground… so many of the effects are subtle and subjective, and stem from a range of factors that include personal life experiences, individual skin tones, and varying environmental cues. A shade of blue that makes your natural colouring look radiantly fantastic will…

Why do so many teenagers, girls in particular, feel the need to pass through a phase of wearing and surrounding themselves in energy-sucking black?

True black is not a colour, it is in fact the absence of colour. As adolescence is a time of emotional upheaval and change, for some it may be about imposing order and fixedness, whilst they attempt to develop their own identity and style. Moving away from childlike things, and adults making decisions – including about what constitutes suitable clothing –…

Our skin tone, eye and hair colour each have their own under- tones which make up our personal colouring.

Whatever your age, there are various palettes of colour to help everyone feel their best and suit their colouring.

Children love anything to do with colour. So whether you’re a parent/grand-parent or guardian, why not delight the child in your life and play a colour test game with them.

This game is great for forming a bond with a child & encouraging self-esteem.

Here’s what to do.

1) Wear something…

When I saw my beautiful twin grand-daughters the day they were born, it was clear they didn’t share the same colouring.

The hospital staff had put a pink hat on one twin and a peach hat on the other twin.”Nothing wrong with that” you might say, but I switched the hats. Straight away I could see the difference. The coloured hats now enhanced their complexions, when I pointed it out, others could see it too.

One twin has cool based colouring like her Mum and suited the pink hat. The other twin has warm…