What Makes a Rainbow?

And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. ~Deuteronomy 6:7

What beautiful days we have had this week. The winds of March are calming, and April showers have begun. I want to get outside, put my feet in the grass and my hands in the dirt. I want to cherish the blooms in the flower beds. I want to walk among the apple trees and smell the sweet fragrance. We walk among a rainbow every day, often without realizing it. But when those April showers come, and the sun shines through the droplets, we still stop in awe. We point. We take pictures. We ask our friends, "Did you see that rainbow yesterday?" Little children are even more mesmerized. I wanted to share What Makes a Rainbow? by Betty Schwartz and offer some ideas for using it with your youngest children.

A rainbow is God's promise to mankind after the flood that He would never destroy the earth by flood again. We still have horrible floods, but not one that covers the whole earth. Can you imagine how the earth was renewing itself after the flood? Springtime was bursting forth with hope everywhere.  Mrs. Schwartz's book also bursts forth with the colors of spring. At the top of each page is a ribbon with a color of the rainbow. The page is filled with things we see every day with that color. The first page is red, and the page has a red ladybug, strawberries, and a flower with red petals. Each page is the next color of the rainbow with large kid friendly illustration. The last page opens up with a pop-up rainbow with a sun. The mother bunny declares that now Little Rabbit knows what makes a rainbow - rain and sunshine. Though God is not mentioned, you as the parent, have a great opportunity to teach about the flood and God's grace. You also might use some or all of the suggestions below to help your child(ren) understand rainbows and colors.

• On a warm day, spray the water hose while the children run through. Point out the rainbow the water and sunshine create. Name the colors. Move the water and try again. Do the colors always line up the same way? 
• Help young children learn to identify colors by pointing out the things they see around them, both inside and outside, that match the colors in the book and in the rainbow they see in the water.
• Paint a rainbow. Pick up the 3 primary colors (red, yellow, blue), a paint brush, and a paint pad at the dollar store. Use a spray bottle to wet a piece of paper. (A little squirt on the child will bring giggles and get attention for the activity.) Pour the paint in little puddles on a foam plate. Help the child make a red arch at the top of the paper. Then, choose the yellow and make another arch close enough for the yellow to blend into the bottom of the red. Now the blue paint next to the yellow. Help the child see the new colors that the mixing makes. Finally, add red again under the blue. 
• Roy G Biv It's a little hard to see the indigo in the rainbow, but your older children may be able to distinguish it. Oh, R red, O orange, Y yellow, G green, B blue, I indigo, V violet. 
• Make the activities fun and fun of giggles. It shouldn't look like teaching. It's sharing memorable moments with your child. 

Heavenly Father, help us enjoy sharing your creation with our children. Help us show them what a wonderful God you are. Help us make memories with our children that will last a lifetime. In Jesus's name. Amen