Exploring Our Senses

Overview

This Kindergarten Science lesson is aligned with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for early education. Specifically, it addresses NGSS K-LS1-1: "Use observations to describe patterns of what plants and animals (including humans) need to survive," integrating sensory exploration as part of understanding ourselves and the environment. The lesson runs for 4,320 minutes (divided into 12 weeks of 6-hour segments, assuming extended activity-based learning). It employs hands-on activities, sensory play, music, and art to teach the five senses and their organs, as well as recognizing stimuli that activate each sense.

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Learning Objectives

At the end of this unit, students will be able to:

• 6.1 Name and identify the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell).
• 6.2 Name and identify the sense organs (eyes, ears, skin, tongue, nose).
• 6.3 Identify and describe stimuli (e.g., sounds, textures, smells, flavors, visuals) that affect each sense.

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Big Ideas for Kids

• Our senses help us understand and explore the world around us.
• Each sense is connected to a special part of our body.
• The environment gives us clues through sights, sounds, textures, smells, and tastes.

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Weekly Breakdown

Here's how the 12 weeks will look:

Week 1: Introduction to the Senses

Focus: Build excitement and curiosity about the senses.

Activities:

• “Mystery Bag” Introduction: Have objects inside opaque bags (e.g., feather, orange, bell) that students feel, smell, or shake to identify using different senses.
• Chart Senses Discovery: Create an anchor chart labeled "Our Five Senses." Add pictures of eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and hands, and write the senses they represent.

Music: Sing The Five Senses Song to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star":
"We see with eyes, we hear with ears,
We smell with noses—oh so dear.
Our hands can touch, our mouths can taste,
Five senses make the world so great!"

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Week 2 & 3: Sight (The Eyes)

Focus: Understanding how our eyes let us see and identifying things we see every day.

Activities:

• "Color Detectives" Game: Walk around the schoolyard or classroom, calling out colors to "spot" with their eyes.
• Optical Illusions Fun: Show simple illusions (e.g., a spinning top or shadow cut-outs) to explain how eyes can "trick" us. Ask students to share what they see.
• DIY I Spy Books: Students glue magazine clippings of things they like to see (e.g., animals, toys) into small booklets.

Art: Paint “What my eyes see outside!” using paper and watercolor to depict the playground or a favorite landscape.

Music: Sing I See with My Eyes to the tune of "The Wheels on the Bus":
"I see the grass, it's green, green, green,
Green, green, green, green, green, green.
I see the sky, it's blue, blue, blue—
Our eyes see all the colors too!"

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Week 4 & 5: Hearing (The Ears)

Focus: Exploring sounds and how ears help us hear.

Activities:

• Sound Scavenger Hunt: Go outdoors to identify sounds like birds chirping, cars passing, or leaves rustling.
• "Percussion Band”: Use classroom objects (e.g., pots, spoons, pencils) to create sounds of high and low pitch.
• Listening Walk: Move quietly and document everything that makes a sound. Use simple clipart images for students to circle based on what they observe.

Art: Make paper-plate earmuffs to represent ears using cotton and ribbon.

Music: Sing Hearing with My Ears to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm":
"I use my ears to hear the sound, E-I-E-I-O!
With a BANG-BANG here, and a BUZZ-BUZZ there,
Here a CRASH, there a CHIRP, everywhere I’m aware!"

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Week 6 & 7: Smell (The Nose)

Focus: Learning how noses let us smell and identifying familiar scents.

Activities:

• “Guess the Smell” Stations: Present jars of various scents like cinnamon, chocolate, lemon, and coffee for students to sniff (using cotton swabs, not direct contact for safety). Ask them to describe each scent.
• Nature Smell Hunt: Go outdoors to smell flowers, soil, and fresh air, recording "What I Smelled Today" on a worksheet.
• Make Scented Playdough: Add essential oils like lavender or peppermint as students mold and describe the dough's smell.

Art: Paint with cinnamon-infused watercolor for a sensory-smelling art project.

Music: Sing What’s That Smell? to the tune of "If You’re Happy and You Know It":
"If you’re smelling and you know it, sniff it out!
If you’re smelling and you know it, sniff it out!
If you smell a flower sweet, or a food that you can eat...
If you’re smelling and you know it, sniff it out!"

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Week 8 & 9: Taste (The Tongue)

Focus: Learning how tongues taste sweet, salty, sour, and bitter.

Activities:

• Taste Test Party: Safely sample small pieces of sweet (honey), salty (pretzels), sour (lemon), and bitter (unsweetened cocoa) foods. Discuss reactions!
• “Guess the Flavor” Game: Students close their eyes and taste jellybeans or flavored crackers, guessing the flavor.
• Create a Taste Chart: Match common foods with their taste group (pictures of lollipops, pickles, cheese, etc.).

Art: Color and label a tongue diagram showing the taste zones.

Music: Sing Taste It with My Tongue to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell":
"The salty tastes so good,
The spicy tastes so bold,
The sour makes me pucker, oh!
And sweet? I want some more!"

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Week 10 & 11: Touch (The Skin)

Focus: Understanding how skin feels textures, temperatures, and more.

Activities:

• Texture Touch Bags: Use fabric bags to conceal various objects (cotton ball, sandpaper, sponge, smooth stone). Let students guess the object by touch.
• Temperature Exploration: Safely feel warm and cool water. Discuss which feels different and when their hands get "too cold!”
• Touch Collage: Make textured collages using feathers, foil, tissue paper, and fabric scraps.

Art: Trace handprints with crayons and label “Soft,” “Rough,” “Smooth,” and similar words for textures.

Music: Sing Feel It with My Skin to the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb":
"I feel it soft, I feel it rough,
I feel it cold, I feel it hot.
My hands can tell with every touch—
The world around is felt so much!"

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Week 12: Bringing It All Together

Focus: Reviewing all senses and how they connect to the world.

Activities:

• Senses Adventure Day: Set up five stations (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch) with activities like “Spot the Picture,” “Listen and Match,” “Guess That Smell,” “Taste Test Relay,” and “Texture Hunt.” Rotate students through stations.
• Create a “My Senses Book”: Students draw or paste photos showing what they’ve learned for each sense (e.g., eyes like seeing rainbows, ears like hearing music).

Class Display: Create a giant wall display titled “How We Sense Our World!” Showcase student projects from each week.

Celebration Song: Recap with The Five Senses Song from Week 1.

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Materials Needed

• Objects for sensory identification
• Safe, familiar foods for taste testing
• Smell jars with cotton balls and scents
• Art supplies like crayons, paint, and glue
• Fabric bags for texture exploration

Assessment:
Through informal observation, interactive songs, group discussions, and their “My Senses Book,” ensure students can identify the senses, their organs, and recognize related stimuli.

Differentiation:
Offer extra support to students with developmental delays by providing one-on-one guidance during activities and using visual aids (e.g., sense charts). For advanced learners, incorporate “Why does our body need this sense?” discussions.

By tying play, exploration, and creativity into science, this unit will captivate young learners and leave lasting impressions on how they engage with the world!