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!