Centre: Explicit / Intentional Centre:

Crystal Rainbow
First, children will design a rainbow with coloured pipe
Teaching: Rainbow Eruptions
Mix up all the colours of the rainbow by adding food
cleaners, they will prepare their own version of a rainbow. Mat session: colouring to vinegar. Set up rows of 6 test tubes and fill one
The educator will tie string around the pipe cleaners when row with vinegar. Children practice colour mixing by adding
the rainbow is complete. Introduction food colouring to the vinegar. Next, add a couple of
Second, an educator (or adult assistant) must be Gather the children on the mat. spoonsful of baking soda to the other row of test tubes and
present for this step to assist, combine the hot water Show children an image of a rainbow. add a couple of drops of dish soap to each test tube
and borax powder in a jar. Add a pipe cleaner rainbow to Questions to ask children: What is the order containing baking soda. Finally, children will pour the
each jar, making sure the rainbow is fully covered by the of the colours of the rainbow? As a class point vinegar mixture into the baking soda to mix the colours
solution. Place the jar/s in a safe place where they won’t to and call out the colours. together and create the rainbow explosion.
be disturbed. In a couple of hours there will be an
observable change, after 24 hours in the solution, gently Introduce the book, How the Crayons Saved Resources: Vinegar, baking soda, dish soap, test tubes, test
lift out your rainbow crystals and let them dry on paper the Rainbow by Monica Sweeney. tube rack, food colouring, spoon and measuring cup
towels for about an hour or so. Children observe and Ask children to pay close attention to the
investigate the grown crystals and can hang these in the colours we just talked about so we can use
classroom as sun catchers. our predicting skills and help the crayons
save the rainbow too!
Resources: Borax, water, jars or vases, popsicle sticks, The book outlines the concept of a rainbow
pipe cleaners in rainbow colours and concentrates on the colours of the
rainbow.

Explain the centres to the children and send

them off to explore.
Centre: Conclusion: Centre:
Exploring Prisms Gather children back on to the mat. Scented Rainbow Science
Children explore different shaped prisms, such as Questions to ask children: Why are colours in Prior to the experiment, make scented baking soda ice cubes
triangular prisms. They explore these by putting them up the rainbow always in the same order? The in each colour of the rainbow. Immediately before the
against natural light at the windows. When the light lesson isn’t delving directly into light and science lesson, remove the cubes from the freezer (ensure
shines through a rainbow can be seen inside. Children wavelengths, however, this question may they are frozen). Arrange the cubes in rainbow order.
play around with ways to tilt the prism so rainbows shine arise and lead to a great opportunity to Children interact with this rainbow science through filling
in different locations in the room. Children can use discuss this idea and relate it to prior and eyedroppers with vinegar and squeezing it onto the cubes.
coloured pencils to colour over their rainbows created the future science experiments. Encourage children to listen closely as they make
prisms on white paper. This is a fun way to see all the observations about what they see and hear. Children may
colours of the rainbow right up close! Children can also Prepare children for the following lesson with predict why the cubes are fizzing and what makes the fizzing
discover how different things look when observed a calming rainbow meditation exercise from sound; children may even smell the droppers and guess that
through a prism (they can see many things at once). GoNoodle: vinegar is used but when they drop it on the cubes they can’t
When putting the prisms onto patterned paper, the Rainbow Breath: smell the vinegar. Further, children can feel the solution as it
patterns changes. https://app.gonoodle.com/activities/rainbow- fizzes and watch the colours mix together.
What’s Happening? White light is a combination of all the breath?s=Search&t=rainbow
colours of the rainbow. As the light from the sun passes Resources: Baking soda, rainbow coloured Jello-O, water,
through the prism, the light refracts (bends) and ice cube trays, vinegar, squeeze bottles, eye droppers, food
separates, making the colours of the visible spectrum. colouring

Resources: Various prisms, patterned paper, blank white

paper, coloured pencils or crayons
Centre: Objective/s: Centre:
Tasting the Rainbow Rainbow Oobleck
Children use their senses to explore a rainbow of fruits. Identify five or more colours of the rainbow. Children are provided with different rainbow coloured bowls
Children taste all different coloured fruits and guess which of oobleck. Children can empty different colours of oobleck
fruit it is and the colour of the fruit. When the fruit and Predict what is happening when different onto a small tray lined with baking paper and experiment
colour has been guessed, the children will colour in materials interact in the rainbow with the different colours blending together. Children can
different colours of the rainbow and end with a full experiments through using the senses (see, use spoons to spoon up small amounts of coloured oobleck
rainbow. hear, smell, touch). and paint with the coloured oobleck on the tray. Skewers can
also be used to move around the different colours. In this
Resources: The fruits to taste may differ per season, messy science play, children can explore liquids and solids.
example fruits may include: strawberries, grapes,
blueberries, kiwi fruit, pineapple, mandarin, oranges Resources: Corn starch, water, food colouring, bowls and
*Ensure food allergies are checked thoroughly before this spoons, baking paper, trays
activity!
Assessment & Recording: (What are we assessing? How are we assessing? How are we recording?)
Anecdotal notes and observations will be kept on the following:
 Students ability to identify five or more colours of the rainbow
 Students ability to predict what is happening when different materials interact in the rainbow experiments; how thorough students used their senses to make
these predictions
 Conversations and discussions about the topic during mat sessions and learning centres (anecdotal notes taken)

Checklist will be used to record student’s knowledge on the lesson objectives (example below):
Student Could identify five or more colours (dot for less Comments (anecdotal notes and observations)
than 5, tick for 5 or more)
 Student A
Student B
Student C

Highlight one or two outcomes specifically connected to your objective/s.

EYLF specific objective links to the learning centre: 4.1 & 5.2
Reference List

Sweeney, M. (2016). How the crayons saved the rainbow. New York City, NY: Simon and Schuster.

GoNoodle. (2019). Rainbow breath. Retrieved from https://app.gonoodle.com/activities/rainbow-breath?s=Search&t=rainbow