Students investigate how their five senses help them learn about the world, beginning with a guided nature walk and sensory scavenger hunt. Through safe, hands-on experiences with a chef, musicians, and an artist or sculptor, they identify each sense and explore how sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch shape art, music, stories, and personal choices. Students create and revise artwork inspired by sensory experiences, use teacher and peer feedback, and reflect on how familiar sights, sounds, smells, tastes, or textures can help them feel calm during heightened moments. They select pieces for a sensory portfolio and explain their choices at an exhibition for families, teachers, and community partners, demonstrating their understanding of all five senses.
Learning goals
Students will identify the five senses, match each sense to its body part, and use them to investigate teacher-approved fruit and nature materials while asking, “How do our five senses help us learn about the world around us?” With a chef, musicians, and an artist or sculptor, students will explore how food, sounds, visual art, textures, media, and dramatic play create different experiences and serve purposes in daily life. Students will create, discuss, critique, and revise art inspired by what they safely see, hear, smell, and touch, then select pieces for a portfolio and explain their choices. Students will collaborate to exhibit their collections for families, teachers, and community partners and reflect on how familiar sights, sounds, smells, textures, or tastes can help them feel calm during heightened moments.
Standards
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Re7.1.Ka - Identify uses of art within one’s personal environment.
[National Core Arts Standards] MA:Re7.1.K.b - Recognize and share how a variety of media artworks create different experiences.
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Cr1.1.Ka - Engage in exploration and imaginative play with materials.
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Pr5.1.Ka - Explain the purpose of a portfolio or collection.
[National Core Arts Standards] MU:Re7.1.K.a - With guidance, list personal interests and experiences and demonstrate why they prefer some music selections over others.
[National Core Arts Standards] MU:Cn10.1.K.a - Demonstrate how interests, knowledge, and skills relate to personal choices and intent when creating, performing, and responding to music.
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Pr4.1.Ka - Select art objects for personal portfolio and display, explaining why they were chosen.
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Cn10.1.Ka - Create art that tells a story about a life experience.
[National Core Arts Standards] VA:Cn11.1.Ka - Identify a purpose of an artwork.
[National Core Arts Standards] TH:Pr5.K.b - With prompting and support, explore and experiment with various technical elements in dramatic play or a guided drama experience (e.g., process drama, story drama, creative drama).
Competencies
Content Expertise - Students develop key competencies, skills, and dispositions with ample opportunities to apply knowledge and engage in work that matters to them.
Effective Communication - Students practice listening to understand, communicating with empathy, and share their learning through exhibiting, presenting and reflecting on their work.
Collaboration - Students co-design projects with peers, exercise shared-decision making, strengthen relational agency, resolve conflict, and assume leadership roles.
Critical Thinking & Problem Solving - Students consider a variety of innovative approaches to address and understand complex questions that are authentic and important to their communities.
Self Directed Learning - Students use teacher and peer feedback and self-reflection to monitor and direct their own learning while building self knowledge both in and out of the classroom.
Academic Mindset - Students establish a sense of place, identity, and belonging to increase self-efficacy while engaging in critical reflection and action.
Products
Students will create a five-senses portfolio with labeled paintings, textures, sound drawings, scent memories, and images of familiar, teacher-approved foods, beginning with observations from a nature scavenger hunt. With feedback from peers, a chef, musicians, and an artist or sculptor, they will revise selected pieces to show what they saw, heard, smelled, touched, or tasted and explain each artwork’s purpose. Each student will add a “Senses Help Me Calm” card showing how safe sights, sounds, smells, textures, or tastes can help during heightened moments. The class will curate an interactive family exhibition where students identify the five senses, share preferences and stories, and explain how their collection answers the essential question.
Launch
Begin with a guided nature walk where children find something to see, hear, smell, and safely touch, without tasting outdoor items. Back in class, a chef offers allergy-checked fruit samples, a musician shares contrasting sounds, and an artist/sculptor provides textured materials as children identify the sense used at each station. Ask, “How do our five senses help us learn about the world around us?” and invite children to create a quick picture of one sensory experience for a growing portfolio and family exhibition. Close by practicing a calming strategy, such as noticing a peaceful sound or texture, and let children revise their pictures after sharing observations with a partner.
Exhibition
Host a “Five Senses Gallery Walk” for families, teachers, and the visiting chef, musicians, and artist/sculptor. Students display revised artwork inspired by what they saw, heard, smelled, touched, or safely tasted, then identify the sense represented and explain their portfolio choice. Small groups lead interactive stations featuring safe sensory materials, music, dramatic play, and memories from the fruit salad or nature walk. Each student shares how the five senses help us learn about the world and chooses a calming sensory strategy for heightened moments.
