When we think about the senses we immediately think about the main five.
Sight – Sound – Taste – Smell – Touch
These are the senses that the books, rhymes, and craft in today’s blog are mainly going to be focussed on but when we talk about the senses we all need to keep in mind other senses that we don’t discuss as much, especially with this age group.
The vestibular sense or our sense of balance, deals with balance but also where we are in relation to other things, direction and our sense of momentum or movement. Proprioception, or the sense of our body and how it is moving as well as a sense that deals with pain in our body – locating it and deals with three different types within the body (organ, joints/bones, skin) and is tied very closely to our sense of touch. In addition we have other senses like that of hunger or awareness of our breathing and heart rates.
These are all physical senses but we also have senses that are less physical (for example the sense of comfort or danger). These feelings are informed by the information that our senses provides our brain.
Talking about, reading about, and crafting about senses can be really easy because they are something that everyone participates with even if their personal experiences differ. This topic also lends itself to lots of wonderful conversations and opportunities to go out and experience our senses…how loud can you yell, how quiet can you whisper, closing your eyes and working out what fruit you’re eating, and many more.
Senses Closeup by Lorna Hendry
Take a closer look at your five senses and discover how they help you find out about the world.
I love this series, and anytime I can share one at a Storytime I do because they have wonderful close-up photographs of the subject. In addition, the text is really clear and concise and packs in lots of pertinent info without getting too technical. A great introduction to the senses.
I Hear a Pickle (and Smell, See, Touch, and Taste it, too!) by Rachel Isadora
Children explore their five senses, learning what they can see, smell, hear, touch, and taste.
This book is another great way to start talking about the five senses and a powerful way to think about them too because our senses are rarely isolated, we take a bite of an apple and we feel the skin and the dribble of juice, we hear the crunch and the sound of chewing, we can smell the apple, taste the sweetness, and we can see the spots where our teeth have bitten into the skin, the spaces where the flesh has broken as well as the different parts of the apple. So many amazing ways to interact with our senses.
Schnitzel von Krumm’s Basketwork by Lynley Dodd
Schnitzel von Krumm is outraged when his misguided family decides to replace his worn out, beaten up, smelly old basket. He tries to find somewhere else sleep, but none of the places he tries out – a pile of laundry, the broom cupboard, the vegetable basket, under a shrub – has the friendly smell of his old basket. Poor little Schnitzel! Will his family get the message?
This book deals with touch and smell but also touches on the way our senses can help us to feel comfort and security. A few moments ago we were talking about football and I could immediately bring up the sound and feel of my foot hitting the football and it reminded me of happy days. Our senses are more than just the five we immediately think about, as mentioned above and this book is a great one to start thinking about those other senses.
Rhymes
Here are My Eyes
Here are my eyes, one and two,
I give a wink, so can you.
When they’re open, I see the light
When they’re closed, it’s dark as night.
I have a little body that belongs to me,
I have two ears to hear with and two eyes to see.
I have a nose for smelling, and a mouth to eat.
I have two hands to wave at everyone I meet!
You Can Hear…
(Tune: She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain)
You can hear the lions roaring at the zoo,
ROAR! ROAR!
You can hear the lions roaring at the zoo,
ROAR! ROAR!
You can hear the lions roaring,
You can hear the lions roaring,
You can hear the lions roaring at the zoo!
ROAR! ROAR!
You can hear the elephants trumpeting…
You can hear the zebras braying…
You can hear the monkeys eeking…
Craft
A senses portrait
What you need:
- Senses Portrait template,
- Colouring items,
- Drawing pencil.
What to Do:
- Draw your portrait.
- Following the instructions at the bottom colour in the different parts of the head that deal with different senses.
- Colour in the part you use to smell with green.
- Colour in the part you use to see with purple.
- Colour in the part you use to hear with blue.
- Colour in the part you use to taste with orange.
- Colour in the rest, the parts you use to feel with yellow.
