Our class just had an amazing visit to the Great Valley Nature Center, an experience that jolted every sense we have. Sensory saunter is what we called this field trip. Although it was drizzly, it didn’t stop us from having fun and enjoying what the park had to offer.
Our guide was so animated and friendly, she reminded and showed us when to use our hearing, touch, taste, sight and smelling senses. She encouraged us to listen intently while we walked quietly through the garden. We heard crickets, the water in the nearby stream and the rain. She also had a bag of objects with different textures that everybody felt. They found it interesting because they felt the objects first without seeing them. This actually reminded the children of our Mystery Bag in class. She gave the children a taste of maple sugar that the leaves made from the maple tree we stood under. They really liked that! She also brought a special cinnamon concoction for the children to smell, which actually smells better after they placed a special liquid potion (water) under their noses like a mustache. That was a good trick! The park was a feast for the eyes. The children spent most of their time looking on the ground for leaves, plants, insects and seeds.
Even with the little rain, it didn’t hinder the children from exploring and enjoying nature that surrounded them. Many of them promised to go back and I don’t blame them.