Do the classroom’s walls and the paint colour make a difference? The answer is – YES. Colors of your classroom have a strong psychological influence on children’s learning and behaviour. But according to research this aspect is not given the right amount of importance.
We will tell you how to choose the right shades for your preschool that will make your premise look bright and beautiful where children feel safe.. The decision you make in selecting the colors for your classroom has a huge influence on learning and how comfortable children feel being in that space.
We can achieve the right ambience by setting up the classroom in the right manner.
Based on the money remaining in the budget or the administrator’s choice, a quick decision is made and a random paint is used to colour the walls. But, that is not the way to go about it.
In this article we will look into the do’s and don’ts about various colours that can be used in a pre-school classroom, the importance of each shade and the impact it can have on a child.

White and Pastel Shades 

Pastel colours are soothing and soft colours like light pink, light green, lilac or peach can be used in classrooms to calm their nerves and reduce anxiety. With young children, the goal is to balance the colors for optimal learning so that children don’t feel too dull or overexcited.
If you have a wall that is going to be filled with a lot of charts, then the ideal shade that can be used on such a wall is white or any other pastel colour. This will provide a nice background and the classroom will not look too colorful.
Bright colors can be added to your decor in the form of furniture, doors or windows of the classroom that complements the light pastel walls. But remember, if you use only cream or beige colours it can be very boring and might make the children feel sleepy and under-stimulated. Hence, make it a point to add bright spots to your classroom.
White and pastel shades are good for passageways in a preschool making them look bright and spacious. Smaller spaces can be painted in white or beige. It will make the space look larger than it is.

Bright and Warm Primary Colours 

Bright colors stimulate learning and are ideal for classroom spaces that are designated for activity or movement. You can also use bright and warm colours such as Yellow or Orange, on the classroom walls.
The goal is to achieve a balance with these colours. So, all the walls should not be coloured using a very bright shade. While one side of the wall could be bright yellow/orange, the rest could be pastel shades balancing it out. The children should feel that the class is a safe and warm environment and they must enjoy their learning experience.
We know it is tough to believe, but the right wall colour will improve a child’s learning experience. The wall behind the teacher’s desk or the one near the main board could be painted in a bright yellow or red. This will help grab attention and retain a child’s focus.
A very bright shade will stimulate* young learners and overusing bright shades could over-stimulate the children and get in the way of learning. Over-stimulating could result in lack of focus and an over-jumpy set of children.
You can even consider painting designated corners in different shades based on the purpose of the space. For example, quiet activities like manipulative play corners that require focus can be painted in pastel shades. It renders a soothing effect while an art corner could be painted in yellow to stimulate a child’s creativity.

Calming Colours 

Blue is a teacher’s favourite. Most teachers paint at least one wall blue in their classroom. The use of vibrant shades like blue and green in a preschool classroom help a young student connect with nature. The colour green is used to symbolize nature and harmony. Both these colours have a calming effect on young minds and must be a vital part of your classroom. Light pastel shades of green or blue are ideal for book corners or reading space in a classroom that requires silence and focus.
Balance calming shades well with the bright and pastel shades. This will help provide the right amount of stimulation that every child in your classroom requires.
Most teachers make a mistake of over-using colours because it is a pre-school classroom and they wish to make it bright. All things in bright shades isn’t the way to go. Blue walls with yellow curtains and a red carpet and green desks might look bright but these colours end up sending too many signals to the child’s brain. These signals will over-stimulate the child and make it difficult for him/her to stay focused.
Remember, classrooms must have the right balance of colors that make the children feel warm and comfortable besides encouraging learning. Paint your pre-school’s waiting area in a color scheme of your choice that is inline with your school’s branding.
Pick a theme and make a list of colours that you wish to use. And, you could use this link to trial and error before you narrow down on a few shades. 
Image Credits: US Embassy Manila