Colours of Koi

Did you know that the brightly coloured koi fish were originally grown as a source of food for rice farmers in Japan? Today they are kept as prized ornamental pets adorning ponds all around the world. Koi are some of the most expensive pet fish with a recent championship winner selling for $1.8 million dollars.

This is why they are known in Japan as "swimming or living jewels". You can find only six colours on Koi. They are white, black, red, yellow, blue and metallic. The brighter and richer the colour, the more valuable the fish become.

Let's colour some Koi!

Printable & Activity Objectives

In this activity, your child will learn about the history and interesting facts about Koi fish or "nishikigoi". They will also design the patterns and colour their own koi fish on the printable worksheets.

It will help your child or student:

• Learn about a new hobby (keeping koi fish) and find out more about what makes these prized pet fishes so valuable.
• Develop their artistic and design skills through the creation of their own unique patterns and colours on the koi fishes in the printable worksheets.

Let's find out more about koi!

Classroom Resources

Simple steps to start:

• Research and find out more about Koi fish varieties, colours and how they are selected in competitions. Here's a interesting video about Koi and why they are so valuable:

Here's a very good video describing the characteristics of most popular varieties of koi fish:

• Start working on the printable worksheets!

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What's in the Printable Worksheet Pack

This printable pack consists of 2 printable worksheets of templated koi fish images. One sheet comes with pre-designed patterns for colouring. The other sheet does not have any designs on the body of the fish and allows for greater creativity.

Click on the download link below to get started. Please note that this printable pack is only for subscribers and paid members.