Looking for definitive quick guide for jQuery/CSS techniques in Edge

Can anyone point me to a straightforward guide for creating effects via scripting? For example:

• To animate the opacity of an image element using jQuery:
  Do this: sym.$('image').attr('src','images/slide.png').animate({'opacity':1.00},5000);
  
  
• To change the background color of a rectangle element using CSS:
  Do this: sym.$("Rectangle").css( "background-color","#FC0");
  
  
• To animate the background color of a rectangle element over time:
  Do this: ??????????

I'm having a hard time finding a source that can tell what to use (CSS vs. jQuery) to do simple types of effects.  Any recommendations are appreciated!