The Color Tablets in the Montessori Sensorial area are used to teach children several lessons about the colors of the world. The original Montessori color tablets were wooden tablets wrapped in colored silk. There were eight tints of eight colors, carefully arranged in a box. Two boxes were used to give the various lessons.
Modern color tablets are made out of wood or plastic. They are also prearranged into boxes designed for each lesson.
Color Box 1
The first color exercises teach the three primary colors: red, yellow, and blue. In the box are six tablets, three of each color. The initial lesson is merely matching the three sets of colors, to demonstrate an ability to distinguish between the three.
After the child masters the ability to match the colors, he is then introduced to the color names, via the three-period lesson. In the first period, the directress points to each color and names it. In the second period, the teacher asks the child to point to each color as she names it. Finally, in the third period, the directress points to each color and asks the child to name it.
Color Box 2
Color Box 2 is similar to Color Box 1, except that it includes eleven colors: gray, black, white, pink, brown, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. The initial presentation is again matching the eleven pairs of colors, starting with the primary colors. Next, the three-period lessons is used to each the color names.
Color Box 3
The third Color Box exercises begin the introduction to the different degrees, or tints, of colors. Three boxes or baskets are set up on a tray. One basket holds a matching set of nine colors. A second basket holds a matching set of the darkest tint of those colors. A third basket holds a matching set of the lightest tint of those colors. Beginning with the basket of the darkest colors, tablets are matched from left to right on the workspace. Then a space is left underneath, and the medium set is matched. Finally, the process is repeated with the lightest set. Vocabulary includes the names of the colors and the different degrees of colors (lightest and darkest).
Color Box 4
Now that the child understands darkest and lightest, he can practice grading the tints of a single color from darkest to lightest. Color Box 4 consists of seven tablets ranging from the darkest to the lightest of one color. The darkest and lightest tablets are placed next to each other and named to emphasize the difference. The grading process begins with the darkest color. Next, the two darkest of the remaining tablets are compared to determine which one comes next. This procedure is used until all seven tablets are ordered.
Color Box 5
The final color box presentation basically is Color Box 4, only repeated eight times, to incorporate all nine of the colors. Often you can purchase a box already separated by color. For a greater challenge, the child may wish to mix all sixty-three tablets and try to sort by color as well as grading lightest to darkest.
The matching and grading exercises found in the Montessori Sensorial curriculum are designed to refine the child’s visual sense in order to better observe and appreciate his world.
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