Anyways - here's Anthro's feature:
This sensory tour activity would obviously work well in geography or cultural studies classes. But what about English or Art when you analyze imagery? You could have students read a work - The Great Gatsby with its color imagery comes to mind - and put together a sensory tour that visually represents what the author puts into words. Then, instead of written captions, you could accompany the images with passages from the novel.
I can also think of an icebreaker on the five senses. With the start of the school year coming up, I always dread trying to come up with an engaging icebreaker that hasn't been done a zillion times before. What about a "My Summer in 5 Senses" activity? Rather than having students do the hum-drum "share 3 fascinating things about yourself!" which rarely produces fascinating results, why not focus in on memorable summer moments? It gives students a chance to share the highlights of their summer and also briefly reminicse about their beautiful summer lives before school sprung upon them yet again. To test this out, I'm going to reflect on my summer in five senses:
Sight - Sitting on the deck of the Delta Queen looking at the downtown Chattanooga sitting high on the cliffs with the river spread out before us and the mountains encircling the city was a beautiful, peaceful, and memorable sight.
Sound - I become a little obsessed with Cher Lloyd this summer. I love her hip, poppy, sassy music. Listening to her sing about "turning her swag on" was pretty spec.
Touch - While camping in the UP, Kyle and I spent a long afternoon playing in Lake Superior. We made muddy sand balls and whipped them at one another. I remember really clearly the feeling of scooping up the wet sand, letting the lake water drain between my finders, and packing the sand together into balls before chucking them at Kyle.
Smell - Sleeping in past 6 a.m. each morning this summer has been grand. Dragging myself out of bed, stumbling into the kitchen, and whipping up a quick cup of coffee on the Keurig to get the day started: even better. There's nothing like the smell of coffee to make mornings more enjoyable.
Taste - It seemed so special but was so simple: Kyle and I shared an ice cream cone of hand-scooped Mackinaw Island Fudge while visiting Tahquemenon Falls in the UP. Cool, creamy, and delicious after hiking around the park.
That was quite fun. Ima do it. Thanks Anthro! For your beautiful clothing, gifts, and decor, AND for your inspriring ideas.