My Color is Rainbow Book Review

My Color is Rainbow Book Review and Papier-mâché Project

This beautiful story is not only vivid and bright, it shares a special message about unity and peace. I recommend this book to any teacher (especially art teachers) and parents looking to show kids that diversity is a powerful thing.

Rainbow Arch Papier-mâché project and My Color is Rainbow by Agnes Hsu

Right now, at this moment I think we as creative thinkers and artists have become so very important, it's our job to paint the world in a better light, to teach our children how to be critical thinkers, to be problem solvers, to find the beauty in ugly, to unite on the foundation of what it means to be a human being. Our creative ways pave a path down a righteous road so let's make it the most colorful one we've ever seen!

​"My Color Is Rainbow" by Agnes Hsu is a magical story about the journey of little white Arch who's trying to decide which color he wants to be. The pages are filled with beautiful, vivid colors that instantly pull you into a rich palette, colors so perfectly chosen it keeps you wondering how little Arch could pick just one.

For an art teacher this book could be a fantastic start to a lesson about color, how we choose them based on feelings and what message they convey to the viewers of our artwork. As the story unfolds each color is described, some of them as loving, peaceful and majestic, these descriptions give examples of how to personify colors and give them new meaning. A descriptive representation of color lends new vocabulary and deeper critical thinking skills to a child's creative process. Think of how they could apply these ideas to artwork, a field of red flowers to show love or painting a portrait of a person with yellow skin to show happiness.

This story opens the door to explore diversity, to show that the world isn't black and white, that color can overshadow the gray. It helps us to plant the message of acceptance in our children, to show them that we don't have to choose to be just one thing, that we can be many things, it shows them that love, peace and happiness are far more powerful than its opposite.

My hope is that a piece of the rainbow is somewhere deep inside all of us.

Below you'll find a fun papier-mâché project with tutorial modeled after little Arch.

Papier-mâché Rainbow Arch

My Color is Rainbow Book and Papier mâché Project

Materials:

• Rainbow Arch papercraft printable (in my post below)
• Cardboard
• Scissors or craft knife
• Hot glue
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brushes
• Newspaper
  
• ​Tacky glue
  

Directions:

Step 1. Print and cut out one of the rainbow Arch patterns from my rainbow Arch printable in my previous post below.

Step 2. Use the pattern to trace onto cardboard, you'll need two of these.

Step 3. Next cut a long strip of cardboard, the width should be about an inch or so.

Step 4. Hot glue the long strip to the outer edges of the rainbow piece a little bit at a time until you've gone all around.

Step 5. Next, glue on the other half of the rainbow.

Step 6. Prepare a bowl with a water and tacky glue mixture, it's about 2 parts glue to 1 part water. Start to papier mâché your rainbow by dipping strips of newspaper into your mixture, be sure to wipe off the excess glue and then cover your rainbow completely. Your rainbow will need about a day to dry completely.

Step 7. You can sand down some of the rough points if you'd like but it's not necessary, when you're ready, paint your rainbow as you wish!