Awakening the Senses

“It was the most imaginative, rich childhood you could ever want. That’s why I have so much

inside me that I want to paint.”—Andrew Wyeth (Merryman, 1991, p. 21)

Braids Christina’s World

Aesthetics

• An abstract concept

• Means perception in Greek

• Involves the love and pursuit of beauty as found in art, movement, music and life

• Is an awareness and appreciation of the natural beauty found in nature and one’s surroundings

• Being a beholder of beauty

Examples of Aesthetic ExperiencesTouching the sparkling

design of frost on a window

Stopping to savor the

aroma of freshly baked bread

Viewing the translucent silkiness of a spider web

Aesthetics

• A branch of philosophy concerned with an individual’s pursuit of and response to beauty

• It involves:– Attitude– Process/experience– Response

Aesthetics

• Teacher’s Role– Expose, not impose– Aesthetic model– Provide for a wide variety in the arts– Aesthetic classroom

• Books• Art visitors• Art trips• Sensory literacy

Aesthetic Development

Children are born with a sense of wonder. Their aesthetic sense develops through:

• Sensory experiences

• Exposure to their own cultural styles

• Experiences with other aesthetic styles

• Messages from the media

• Adult and peer reactions to arts performances

Developing Sensory Awareness

1. Describe the sensory qualities of things and events.

2. Put out displays of interesting objects.

3. Ask questions that invite children to describe or compare sensations they are feeling.

What Is Sensory Perception?

Exteroceptors

Visual perception

Auditory perception

Olfactory perception

Gustatory perception

Tactile perception

What Is Sensory Perception? (continued)

What Is Sensory Perception? (continued)

Infants are born ready to learn through their senses and make meaning of those interactions from interacting with others.

Sensory integration is the processing of information gathered by the senses.

Sensory integration dysfunction (SID) is being over- or under-sensitive to touch, movement, sights, and sounds.

What Is Sensory Perception? (continued)

• Sensory impairment and lack of sensory stimulation can lead to developmental and social issues

• Under- or over- sensory stimulation can inhibit the development of deep understanding.

Why Is Sensory Perception Important?

1. Select sensory-rich stimuli.

2. Alert children to the experience.

3. Allow for choice of interaction.

4. Actively engage verbally and non-verbally about the sensory qualities.

5. Observe and build on the children’s reaction.

How Should Sensory Perception Activities Be Selected?

• Visual

• Tactile

• Olfactory

• Taste

• Auditory

How Should Sensory Perception Activities Be Presented?

Additional Senses (Montessori)

• Chromatic- Montessori views this as a subset of the broader sense of vision. It involved the ability to identify, match, and discriminate among colors.

• Thermic- deals with the

perception of temperature.

This wooden box with compartments holds 8 stainless steel bottle with screw-on tops.The teacher prepares the exercise by filling the bottles with water of various temperature. The exercise of pairing and grading the thermic bottles helps refine the thermic senses.

Additional Senses (Montessori)

• Sterognostic- being able to recognize objects through tactile-muscular exploration without the aid of vision

Feel-it Bag

Additional Senses (Montessori)

• Baric- Recognizing objects as heavy or light The Baric Tablets introduce and

refine the concept of the baric sense. While blindfolded, the child endeavors to discern the weight of the tablets of wood. Error is controlled by the color of the wooden tablets, the lightest color wood being the lightest weight to the darkest color wood being the heaviest weight. The set consists of a box with 7 light-weight tablets, a box with 7 medium-weight tablets and a box with 7 heavy-weight tablets.

Additional Senses (Montessori)

• Kinesthetic- involves the whole body, sensory-motor muscular response

Elements of the Arts

These ingredients are the building blocks of the artist, composer, dancer, and actor. All arts performances and works contain one or more of the following:

Line Shape Color Texture

Pattern & Rhythm

Form Space Movement

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Line

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Color

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Texture

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Shape

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Pattern & RhythmInsert image 4.11

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Form

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Space

Elements of the Arts (continued)

Movement