Cambridge Starters: Colours and Clothes -- Vocabulary, Exercises and Describing Outfits

Colours and clothes are among the most visual and memorable topics in Cambridge YLE Starters. Children need to name colours, identify clothing items, and describe what characters are wearing. The good news is that this topic connects directly to everyday life: your child's own wardrobe is the best practice resource you have.

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Why Colours and Clothes Appear Across the Whole Exam

In the Starters exam, clothes and colours appear in:

• Listening Part 4: The examiner says a colour, and children colour a specific item in a picture (for example, "Colour the girl's hat red.").
• Reading Part 1: Children read True/False sentences about a picture that often includes clothing details.
• Reading Part 3 or 4: Short texts describe characters and include clothing descriptions.
• Speaking: The examiner shows a scene card with characters and asks "What is she wearing?" or "What colour is his jacket?"

Getting these words right, and using "wearing" and "has got" correctly, helps children score well across all parts.

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Vocabulary Section 1: Colours

Cambridge Starters tests all the main colours. Children must recognise the written word and say it clearly.

Note: Grey appears in some Starters materials. It is worth teaching alongside the core ten colours.

Tip for parents: Pick a "colour of the day." In the morning, find 5 objects that are that colour. Say "This is [colour]" for each one. By evening, your child will own that word completely.

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Vocabulary Section 2: Clothes

These are the clothing words children need for Cambridge Starters.

Tip for parents: When your child gets dressed, name each item in English. "Put on your socks. Now your shoes. That is a nice blue jumper!" Daily repetition in a real context is the most effective learning method for ages 5-8.

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Grammar Section: "Wearing" vs "Has Got"

Children must use two patterns to describe clothes in the Starters exam.

Pattern 1: Present continuous with "wearing"

Use this to describe what someone is doing right now.

Pattern 2: "Has got" for possessions and appearance

Use this to describe what someone has on their body.

Combining colour and clothing:

• "She is wearing a red dress and white shoes."
• "He has got a purple scarf and grey trousers."
• "I am wearing my blue jumper today."

Important: The adjective (colour) always comes before the noun (clothing item).

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Exercise 1: Colour the Picture (Starters Listening Part 4 Style)

This exercise is for parents to read aloud while children colour a simple drawing. Draw or print a simple outline picture of a child with: a hat, a shirt, trousers, shoes, and a bag.

Instructions for parents: Read each sentence slowly and clearly. Your child colours the matching item.

"Colour the hat red."

"Colour the shirt blue."

"Colour the trousers brown."

"Colour the shoes black."

"Colour the bag green."

After colouring, ask: "What colour is the hat?" -- "The hat is red."

This mirrors exactly how Starters Listening Part 4 works in the real exam.

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Exercise 2: True or False? (Starters Reading Part 1 Style)

Read the description and write T (True) or F (False) for each sentence.

Description:

Look at Sam. Sam is a boy. He is wearing a yellow shirt and grey trousers. He has got a black hat. His shoes are brown. He is also wearing a blue scarf. His bag is purple.

Sam is wearing a yellow shirt. ___

His trousers are black. ___

He has got a red hat. ___

His shoes are brown. ___

His scarf is green. ___

Sam's bag is purple. ___

Answer key: 1. T 2. F 3. F 4. T 5. F 6. T

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Exercise 3: Fill in the Blanks with Colour and Clothing

Choose a colour and a clothing word to complete each sentence correctly. Use the word lists from this post.

She is wearing a ___ ___. (colour: pink / item: dress)

He has got a ___ ___. (colour: black / item: hat)

They are wearing ___ ___. (colour: white / item: socks)

I am wearing a ___ ___. (colour: grey / item: jumper)

The girl has got ___ ___. (colour: brown / item: boots)

Answer key: 1. pink dress 2. black hat 3. white socks 4. grey jumper 5. brown boots

Extension challenge: Now write one sentence about what YOU are wearing right now.

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Exercise 4: Unscramble the Clothing Words

Rearrange the letters to find the clothing item.

tshi = ___________

sserd = ___________

otac = ___________

acrfs = ___________

toobs = ___________

tah = ___________

krits = ___________

vloges = ___________

sohes = ___________

mrjupe = ___________

Answer key:

shirt

dress

coat

scarf

boots

hat

skirt

gloves

shoes

jumper

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Speaking Practice: Describing What People Are Wearing

The Starters Speaking test lasts about 3-4 minutes. For the scene card task, children describe a picture. Practise these patterns out loud every day.

Pattern 1: Describing a picture character

• "She is wearing a red dress and pink shoes."
• "He has got a blue hat and a grey coat."
• "The boy is wearing white socks and black boots."

Pattern 2: Answering "What is she / he wearing?"

• Examiner: "What is the girl wearing?"
• Child: "She is wearing a green skirt and a yellow shirt."
• Examiner: "What colour are her shoes?"
• Child: "Her shoes are brown."

Pattern 3: Talking about yourself

• Examiner: "What are you wearing today?"
• Child: "I am wearing a blue jumper and black trousers. I have got white socks and brown shoes."

Practice tip: Stand in front of a mirror with your child every morning. Ask "What are you wearing?" and answer together. This daily habit builds speaking confidence faster than any worksheet.

Describing family members:

• "My mum is wearing a purple dress."
• "My dad has got a white shirt and grey trousers."
• "My sister is wearing pink shoes and white socks."

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Interactive Game and App Ideas

These activities work on tablets, phones, and computers.

1. Dress-Up Avatar Game Many free apps and websites let children dress a character. After dressing the avatar, the child describes the outfit out loud: "She is wearing a red dress and blue shoes. She has got a yellow hat." This combines the two exam patterns -- visual identification and spoken description.

2. Colour Recognition Tap Game Search for colour-learning games where a colour word appears on screen and children tap the matching coloured object. This trains the link between the written word and the colour, which is tested in Starters Listening Part 4.

3. Cambridge YLE Starters Practice Apps Search for official Cambridge English Young Learners apps. Many include colouring and clothes vocabulary tasks that match the real exam format. Short 10-minute sessions are ideal for ages 5-8.

4. Photo Description Game Take photos of family members wearing different clothes. Show the photos on a tablet or phone. The child must say: "She is wearing a [colour] [item]" for each photo. Add a challenge: the parent changes one item and the child must spot what changed.

Screen time tip: After a digital session, move to a physical game. Children remember vocabulary better when they connect it to movement.

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Home Games

Game 1: Clothes Hunt

You need: Your home's wardrobe or laundry and two players.

How to play:

One player says a colour: "Find something blue!"

The other player runs to find a blue clothing item and brings it back.

They show it and say: "This is a blue [item]." For example: "This is a blue jumper."

Score one point for finding the correct colour. Score a bonus point for the correct English sentence.

Swap roles. First to 10 points wins.

Extension: Make it harder by asking for colour AND item: "Find a black hat!" The child must find an item matching both descriptions.

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Game 2: Fashion Designer Drawing Game

You need: Paper, coloured pencils or crayons.

How to play:

Each player draws an outline of a person (a simple stick figure or a more detailed drawing).

Swap drawings. Each player designs an outfit for the other person's figure using any colours they choose.

When finished, describe the outfit in English: "She is wearing a pink dress. She has got orange shoes and a green hat."

The other player listens and checks -- do the sentences match the drawing?

Learning boost: This game practises listening as well as speaking. The child drawing checks their understanding of the description.

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Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Mistake 1: Using the article "a" with plural clothing

• Wrong: "She is wearing a red shoes."
• Right: "She is wearing red shoes."

Shoes, socks, boots, gloves, and trousers are always plural. No "a" in front of them. Tip: if you need two of something to make it work, it is plural (two shoes, two socks, two gloves).

Mistake 2: Missing the verb "is"

• Wrong: "She wear a blue dress."
• Right: "She is wearing a blue dress."

The present continuous needs the verb "to be." Practise it as a fixed chunk: "She is wearing... He is wearing... I am wearing..."

Mistake 3: Putting the colour after the noun

• Wrong: "She has a dress red."
• Right: "She has a red dress."

In English, adjectives come before nouns. Children who speak languages where adjectives follow the noun often make this mistake. Practise colour + clothing as fixed pairs: red dress, blue hat, black shoes.

Mistake 4: Confusing "wear" and "wearing"

• Wrong: "She wears a red dress right now."
• Right: "She is wearing a red dress right now."

For actions happening at this moment, use the present continuous (is wearing). For habits, use simple present (She wears dresses to school).

Mistake 5: Forgetting "got" in "has got"

• Wrong: "She has a blue hat."
• Right: "She has got a blue hat."

At Starters level, the Cambridge exam uses "has got" for descriptions. Teach it as one fixed phrase: "has got."

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What's Next?

Once your child can confidently describe clothing and colours in full sentences, move on to:

• Family members -- "My mum is wearing a purple dress. She has got brown shoes."
• Animals -- describing animals by colour: "The cat is black and white."
• Numbers and classroom objects -- counting coloured items: "There are three blue chairs."
• Cambridge Starters: Food and Drink -- combining with likes: "She likes her orange dress."

When your child can complete all four exercises without help and describe a picture using both "wearing" and "has got," they are ready to start Cambridge Movers vocabulary.

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Quick Reference Card (Cut Out and Keep)

Colours: red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, pink, black, white, brown, grey

Clothes: dress, skirt, shirt, trousers, shorts, jacket, coat, hat, shoes, socks, boots, gloves, scarf, jumper, swimsuit

Key patterns:

"She is wearing a [colour] [clothing item]."

"He has got a [colour] [clothing item]."

"What are you wearing?" -- "I am wearing a [colour] [clothing item]."

Getting dressed is English practice. Use it every single morning.