by James H. Pence

Next Tuesday, I'm going to show you how to make your own color wheel. In anticipation of that, I've listed some web sites that focus on color theory. The sites listed below offer something for all ages. 

An important part of learning art is learning how to mix and create colors. The better you understand how color works, the more you will be able to do. Plus, playing with color is just plain fun!

So here are my top five "color theory" web sites:

1. Super-easy Color Wheel Page for Young Children -- http://www.kidzone.ws/science/colorwheel.htm

This one is great for very young children. Nothing complex, just the basic primary and complementory colors and how they relate to one another.

2. Easy and Fun Color-mixing Tutorial -- http://www.artgraphica.net/free-art-lessons/watercolor/watercolor-color-wheel.html

I'd recommend this site for middle graders. There's a little more in-depth explanation of how colors work and relate, plus an easy exercise in color mixing using one brush, watercolors, and paper plates.

3. Color Theory Tutorial -- http://www.worqx.com/color/color_wheel.htm

Send your jr. high and high-schoolers to this site. It's still very concise, but provides more detail than the other sites and is a bit more complex.

4. The History of the Color Wheel -- http://www.colourlovers.com/blog/2008/05/08/history-of-the-color-wheel/

Did you know that Sir Isaac Newton was influential in the development of the color wheel? Neither did I until I visited this page. If you're interested not only in color theory, but also the history of color theory, check out this site.
 

5. Basic Watercolor Supplies -- http://www.watercolorpainting.com/beginners_guide_to_watercolor.htm

Okay, strictly speaking this site isn't about color theory. It's more of a follow-up to my Tuesday video tip. The author of this site provides a very nice summary (with photos) of what you need to buy if you want to get started with watercolor. Couldn't have done it better myself.