Use five senses cut-and-color activities to make children aware of their individual senses.
Five senses cut-and-color activities increase children's awareness of the ways in which they take in information about their environment. Help children to understand their sensory skills by conducting activities that enable them to focus on one sense at a time. Use simple cut-and-color activities to create color viewers, instruments, scented flowers and texture-filled collages, all of which heighten a child's experience of a particular sense.
Sight
Hand out paper plates, colored cellophane sheets and tape to the children. Have them cut slits that are large enough to peek through in the plates. Ask them to select a cellophane sheet and cut a strip to cover the slit. Direct them to tape the strip to the plate so as to create a color viewer. Have the children peer at the room through their viewers. Have them exchange plates to view their environment in different colors. Another activity that engages a child's visual facility is fingerprint art. Hand out construction paper, scissors and paint. Have the children trace one hand and use paint to stamp fingerprints. Ask the children to cut their hands out of the paper, and then study their fingerprints with magnifying glasses.
Sound
Divide the class into three groups. Give rubber bands and shoe boxes to one group. Have them color and cut shapes into the sides of the boxes to create guitars. Instruct them to stretch the rubber bands around the boxes to make strings. Hand out balloons and jars to the second group. Have them stretch the balloons over the jars. Direct them to use their fingers to tap on their drums. Give paper plates and cups of dry beans to the third group. Have the children color the plates, and then staple them together so the plates are three-quarters shut. Ask them to pour beans into their maracas and staple the plates to shut completely. Have the children play their instruments, directing them to listen to the sounds they make.
Smell
Soak cotton balls in each of the following: mint extract, vanilla extract, lemon juice, pickle juice, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon and perfume. Have the children cut out flower shapes from construction paper. Ask them to add a scented cotton ball to each flower. Pin the flowers on a bulletin board when they're done. Take a tour of the garden, directing the children to smell the flowers and identify the scents. Have the children paint cut-out shapes with Kool-Aid or shaving creme. To emphasize the power of smell, ask them to paint with their noses and gently press shapes onto paper.
Taste and Texture
Have the children cut out images of their favorite foods from magazines. Place objects with different textures, such as faux fur, tissue paper, feathers, cotton balls, sandpaper, corrugated cardboard and felt scraps, on a table. Ask the children to glue their cut-outs over a texture that matches their food. If a child selects ice cream as his favorite food, guide him to choose a felt scrap that reflects the smooth surface of ice cream. Have the children share their pictures, describing the taste and texture of their favorite foods.
Tags: Have children, Have them, cut-and-color activities, group Have, construction paper