Designing with Colour for Educational Publishing

The Power of Colour in Educational Publishing: A Guide for Designers

Introduction

In the world of educational publishing, colour is far more than just an aesthetic choice; it’s a powerful tool that shapes how learners engage with and absorb information. From picture books to interactive apps, colour plays a crucial role in sparking curiosity, guiding focus, and enhancing emotional responses. As educators and designers, understanding the impact of colour on learning is essential for creating materials that are not only visually appealing but also cognitively effective.

Importance of Colour in Children’s Educational Publishing

Colour is a powerful design tool that enhances learning, engagement, and emotional response. In educational publishing, it influences mood, attention, and information retention. Understanding colour theory helps designers communicate effectively, ensure consistency (using CMYK, RGB, Pantone, and HEX values), and create impactful, culturally sensitive designs. Thoughtful colour choices improve comprehension, stimulate curiosity, and make materials more intuitive. By strategically using warm and cool tones, for example as alternative chapter colours, designers can guide focus and structure content, ultimately supporting a positive and effective learning experience.

Colour psychology also plays a crucial role, influencing emotions and the learner's journey. By thoughtfully using colours, designers can enhance engagement and support specific learning goals in educational content.

Accessibility of Colour

In ELT (English Language Teaching) publishing design, colour accessibility ensures all learners, including those with visual impairments, colour blindness, or learning disabilities, can engage effectively with educational materials. Proper colour usage enhances learning, while improper choices can create barriers.

Key considerations include high-contrast text for readability, especially for learners with low vision, and avoiding reliance on colour alone to convey meaning. For example, combining colours with icons or labels ensures clarity for colour-blind learners. Meeting Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) contrast standards is crucial to ensure accessibility for all users.

Tools like Adobe Color Accessibility Checker help test colour palettes for contrast and colour blindness compatibility, whilst meeting WCAG accessibility standards. Adobe also has their Colour Palette Generator, a great aid for designers, helping you to create impactful and cohesive colour palettes. By using these tools, ELT publishers can create visually effective, inclusive materials that support diverse learners and provide an equitable learning experience.

Considerations for Age Appropriateness

When designing for children, it’s important to consider their developmental stage and how they engage with materials.

Infants (0-3 years): High-contrast colours like black, white, and red help develop visual acuity, with bold patterns for engagement.

Preschoolers (3-5 years): Bright primary colours (red, blue, yellow) reinforce basic concepts like shapes and numbers.

Early Elementary (6-8 years): A mix of vibrant colours (greens, blues) with neutral tones helps maintain focus while keeping interest.

Tweens (9-12 years): Muted tones (soft purples, teal) reflect their growing maturity and deeper learning needs.

Teens (13-18 years): More refined, less cartoonish palettes with darker shades (blues, purples) suit their evolving tastes, while accent colours highlight important information.

Adults (18+ years): For more serious content, use sophisticated colours like navy and burgundy, with minimalist design to aid focus and clarity.

As children grow, their emotional and cognitive needs change, requiring adjustments to colour choices.

Colours working as a cohesive set

Designing educational resources requires balancing creativity with consistency, particularly when working across components like student books, workbooks, and teacher’s guides. A well-chosen colour palette is more than just aesthetic—it unifies the entire set. Colours must harmonise within each component while ensuring cohesion across the suite. Techniques like tints, gradients, and reverse-outs can provide subtle differentiation, making it easier for learners and educators to navigate. Thoughtful application of these elements ensures materials are visually engaging, functional, and interconnected.

Cultural Context of Colour

Colour is not universal—its meaning can vary greatly depending on cultural context. A colour that symbolises positivity in one culture may have a completely different significance in another. Designers must be mindful of these differences, especially when creating educational materials for different markets. Understanding cultural associations ensures that designs are respectful and appropriate, avoiding misunderstandings or negative connotations.

At the same time, it’s important to recognise when pushing the boundaries of tradition may be beneficial.Bold, unexpected colour choices can create a fresh, impactful response, drawing attention and sparking curiosity. By balancing cultural sensitivity with creativity, designers can create thoughtful and engaging designs.

For example:

Red: In Western cultures, it signifies excitement or danger, while in China, it symbolises good fortune and joy.

White: Often represents purity and peace in Western cultures, but in some Asian cultures, it is linked to mourning and death.

Green: Generally represents growth and balance but can also symbolise envy or inexperience in some cultures.

By incorporating cultural sensitivity, designers can ensure their colour choices don’t inadvertently convey the wrong message, creating more inclusive designs.

Balance of Bright and Muted Tones

Bright colours are effective for grabbing attention, but too much can cause visual fatigue. Balancing vibrant colours with muted tones creates a visually stimulating yet harmonious design. Bright colours like yellow, orange, and red can highlight key points or convey excitement, while softer tones like blues, greens, and greys provide a calming contrast and help guide children through content without overwhelming them. For example, an educational workbook might use bright colours for activity sections and softer hues for text, creating a structured design.

User Engagement Through Colour

Colour is not just for visual appeal; it can help guide the user by encouraging interaction and highlighting important information, such as the use of bright and contrasting colours to highlight features. Colour can be used to direct the learner through a narrative, with interactive elements changing colour and headings or instructions in bright colours to attract attention. A common practice within the industry, and one we use here at Wild Apple Design, is to use yellows, oranges and light blues for features as they sit well with other colours.

Thoughtful use of colour can boost engagement, as seen in the well known book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, where vibrant colours reflect the story’s themes of growth and transformation. For young learners, colour-based systems on book covers can be more intuitive than titles, making it easier to find the right material.

Conclusion

In conclusion, colour is a vital tool in educational publishing, influencing engagement, learning, and emotional responses. By understanding colour theory, accessibility, cultural significance, and age-appropriate design, educators and designers can create materials that are not only visually appealing but also cognitively effective. Thoughtful colour choices can enhance comprehension, guide user experience, and foster an inclusive learning environment. Whether through balancing bright and muted tones, ensuring accessibility, or respecting cultural contexts, colour plays a crucial role in supporting young learners and helping them navigate educational content with ease and curiosity.