🎨Arts·15 min·Sample Lesson

Mixing Colors

Red and yellow are best friends. When they mix together — poof — orange appears! Every time you mix two colors, you make brand new magic.

What You'll Learn

The three special colors called primary colors. How mixing two primary colors makes a new color. The names of the new colors you make. How to try mixing colors yourself.

The Three Special Colors

Red, yellow, and blue are called primary colors. They are special because you cannot make them by mixing any other colors together. But here's the cool part: almost every other color in the world can be made by mixing these three!

Mixing Magic

Red + Yellow = Orange Yellow + Blue = Green Blue + Red = Purple These new colors are called secondary colors, because they come second — after you mix two primary colors together.

Try It At Home

Put one small dab of paint on paper, then add a dab of a different color right next to it. Use a brush or your finger to swirl them together and watch the new color appear!

Match the two colors you mix to the new color they make.

Terms

Red + Yellow

Yellow + Blue

Blue + Red

Red + White

Definitions

Pink

Purple

Orange

Green

Drag terms onto their definitions, or click a term then click a definition to match.

What Happens With Black and White?

Adding white to a color makes it lighter. That's called a tint — like how red and white make pink. Adding black to a color makes it darker. That's called a shade — like how blue and black make navy.

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What color do you get when you mix red and yellow?

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If you want to make a color lighter, what should you add to it?

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Paint a Rainbow of Mixes

Using paint or crayons, mix each pair of primary colors on paper: red + yellow, yellow + blue, and blue + red. Write the name of each new color you made next to it. Then pick one color and add a little white to it to make a lighter version, and write down what happened.

Did You Know?

The painter Claude Monet often mixed his colors right on the canvas instead of on his palette, so the paint would blend in surprising ways and make his paintings feel alive with light.

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