Color By Code Worksheets for Teachers
Bring printable color by numbers, letters and more foundational concepts into your classroom with fun worksheets created by teachers for teachers.
This collection of curriculum-aligned teaching resources is designed to add an engaging element to your worksheets for math, science, ELA 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 color 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 Color By Code Worksheet?
Haven't heard the term color by code? That's OK! Maybe you've heard of color by numbers or coloring by math? Or maybe you call them mystery picture worksheets?
These fun worksheets allow students to pull out their crayons or colored pencils to color a picture based on a predetermined colour key or code, where each color corresponds to a specific number or symbol. The goal is to match the numbers or symbols on the picture with the corresponding colors to reveal a mystery picture.
Color by code refers not just to color by numbers but also coloring by parts of speech, synonyms, addition and other educational concepts!
Coloring by shape is a type of color by code worksheet!
History of Color by Numbers
Ever wonder how coloring 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 colors.
In the 1950s, an 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 color by numbers in schools! His kits included pre-printed canvases, numbered paints and brushes, and his idea was soon adapted to make coloring books for kids.
In the versions for kids, numbers or symbols were added to line drawings instead of canvases, and young children could easily color within the lines using crayons or colored pencils!
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Crazy Boxes – Multiplication Facts of 4, 6, 7, and 8
Create a color pattern using multiplication facts of 4, 6, 7, and 8 with this color by number worksheet.
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Crazy Boxes – Multiplication Facts of 11
Create a color pattern using multiplication facts of 11 with this color by number worksheet.
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Dinosaur Math - Addition and Subtraction (Version 2)
Solve the addition and subtraction number sentences to color the dinosaur.
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Gumball Compound Words Worksheet
Help your students learn to read and identify compound nouns with a compound word color-by-code worksheet.
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Five Senses Coloring Worksheets
Help your students understand more about their five senses with a pack of printable 5 Senses coloring worksheets.
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Following Directions Worksheets - Reading a Clock Review
Practice telling time to the half-hour, quarter-hour, and five-minute mark with a pack of printable Following Directions worksheets.
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Color by Number Christmas - Geometry Worksheet
Use a Color by Number Christmas Geometry worksheet to practice classifying 2D and 3D shapes.
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Christmas Color By Number - One More or Less
Practice finding numbers that are one more and one less than with a printable Christmas color-by-number worksheet.
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Kindergarten Sight Word Worksheet - Color By Sight Word Snake
Build fluency with high-frequency words and give your students a fun way to practice with an editable kindergarten color-by-sight word worksheet.
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Color By Vowel Sound (Winter Worksheet for Kindergarten & 1st Grade)
Use a "cool" color by vowel sound worksheet to bring a bit of Winter into the classroom this season.
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Thanksgiving Color-By-Number for Kindergarten - Counting
Count sets of objects up to ten with a printable Thanksgiving Color by Number Worksheet for Kindergarten.
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Double Digit Multiplication Worksheets - Halloween Color By Number
Practice multiplying 2-digit by 2-digit numbers with a pair of engaging Halloween color-by-number worksheets.
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Trick or Treat Digraphs Worksheet
Sort Halloween Digraphs and color them by code with a fun Halloween Phonics worksheet.
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Red Ribbon Color By Code - Good Choices vs. Bad Choices
Identify good and bad choices with a printable Red Ribbon Week color-by-code worksheet.
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Firefighter Color By Number Worksheet - Hundreds Chart
Print the perfect math activity for Fire Prevention Week with a printable firefighter hundreds chart color-by-number worksheet.
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Halloween Multiplication Color By Number Worksheet
Practice multiplying single-digit numbers with a Halloween color-by-number worksheet.
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Homophone Mandala Flower Worksheets
Have your students create a colorful mandala flower while simultaneously demonstrating their understanding of common homophones.
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Halloween Area and Perimeter Color by Number Worksheet
Use these Halloween color-by-number worksheets to practice identifying the perimeter and area of regular polygons.
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Odd and Even Color-by-Number Worksheets
Practice identifying if the sum of two numbers is odd and even with this fun set of color-by-number worksheets.
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Halloween Shapes - Color By 2D Shapes Worksheet
Don’t get too spooked while trying to identify 2D shapes with a printable Halloween Shapes Color by Code worksheet!
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Halloween Shapes Worksheet - Batty for 2D Shapes
Go batty and identify the 2D shapes with a printable Halloween Shapes worksheet.
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Rounding Decimals – Differentiated 5th Grade Color by Code Worksheet
Guide your 5th-grade students to round decimals to the nearest tenth and hundredth with this differentiated color-by-code worksheet.
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Decimal Designs – Differentiated Decimal Rounding Worksheet for 5th Grade
Guide your students to round decimals to different places and create a beautiful design with this differentiated worksheet for 5th grade.
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Color by Parts of Speech (Nouns, Verbs, Prepositions, and Adjectives) – Owl
Identify nouns, verbs, prepositions, and adjectives with this color-by-code style worksheet.
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Character or Not? - Coloring Worksheet
Explore the difference between characters and non-characters with this coloring worksheet.
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Subtraction Across Zero - Color By Number Worksheet
Practice subtraction across zeros with a fun color by number worksheet.
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Hundreds Chart Color By Number - Subtraction
Practice subtracting single and double-digit numbers with a set of subtraction color by number task cards.
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Affixes Worksheet - Color By Code
Practice identifying words with affixes with a fun color by code worksheet.
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Color By 3D Shapes - Worksheet
Practice identifying 3D shapes and their attributes with a code-based coloring task!
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Real-World 3D Shapes - Coloring Worksheet
Explore three-dimensional shapes in the real world with this coloring worksheet.
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Suffixes - Color By Code Worksheet
Reveal the hidden picture and practice using the inflectional endings -s, -es, -ies, and -ves with a color-by-code worksheet.
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Measuring Angles – Mystery Picture Worksheet
Find the measure of each angle and use the color guide to reveal a mystery picture with this worksheet designed for 4th-grade students.