On this page
Class is in session on this panda at school coloring page. A cheerful panda with a red backpack stands at the chalkboard, holding up a piece of chalk with one paw and hugging a blue notebook with the other. The board shows ABC and 123 next to a little sun. Around the room you can spot a globe, an apple on a stack of books, a wall clock and a full bookcase.
The room has more small objects than most of our panda pages, so it fits ages 4 to 9 best. Plan on 20 to 30 minutes. Younger kids can focus on the panda and the board, while older ones can take their time on each book.
Back to school color ideas
A classroom gives you plenty of reasons to use bright colors. Give the backpack straps a color your child would pick for a real bag. Red is a classic, but purple or teal looks great against the black chest.
The chalkboard can be green or black. Green feels old school, and it makes the letters easy to see. If you go with black, use a white crayon first on the letters and sun, then color the board around them. The wax will keep the marks a bit lighter.
The books are a good place for a color pattern. Line them up on the shelf as red, blue, yellow, green, then start again. The stack on the desk can match or do its own thing. Give the apple a shiny spot by leaving a small part white.
Panda at school coloring page tips
The dark fur covers a lot of this bear. Ears, eye patches, both arms, the chest and both legs all go black, and the belly and head stay white. Because one arm reaches up over the board and the other wraps around the notebook, the arms cross over other objects. Slow down at those edges.
- Color the chalk white or leave it alone, and do the paw around it
- Do the desk legs and the bookcase in brown, using lighter pressure on the desk top
- Try tan for the floor boards, and add a dark line between them
- Pick a pale wall color so the room feels bright
The globe has two shapes for land. Color them green and fill the rest with blue. If your child knows a few maps, ask which country those shapes might be.
Clock hands are fun to change as well. The drawing shows four o'clock, which is around the time many kids get home. A child learning to tell time can write that time on the back.
What a panda would learn
Real pandas do have something like school. The Smithsonian's National Zoo says cubs stay with their mothers for one and a half to three years. That is a long time with one teacher.
Pandas also come with a built in tool for their schoolwork. Each paw has a "pseudo thumb," made from a long wrist bone covered with a fleshy pad, so holding a stalk is easy. It would probably work on a piece of chalk too.
First day activities
Teachers can hand this out during the first week. Ask students to add their own name to the chalkboard, then write one thing they want to learn this year. Hang the pages in a row outside the door for a welcome display.
Parents can use it as a calm activity on the night before school starts. Talk about what will be in your child's backpack, and let them draw those items in the empty spots of the room.
More school pages
Pair this sheet with the backpack coloring page or the school bus coloring page for a full back to school pack. For a hungrier bear, print the panda eating bamboo coloring page.
Questions
Can I use this on the first day of school?
Yes. Students can write their name on the board in the drawing, then add one thing they hope to learn. It also works as a quiet morning task.
What time does the clock show?
The hands point to four o'clock. Kids who are learning to tell time can write it on the back or draw new hands.
Should the chalkboard be green or black?
Either one works. Green keeps the letters easy to read. For a black board, go over the letters with white crayon first.
