Like I’ve mentioned before, I always try to take L’s lead in what she chooses to explore and what I can “teach” her. If she naturally shows a particular interest in something, the former educator in me tries to find opportunities for growth and learning.
L is at the age where she loves “helping,” especially around the house. One of her favorite “chores” is helping her Dada water the plants outside. She also loves to pick the flowers off the plants and bring them inside. She puts one in a little vase for me every morning.
(This little clay vase is the cutest thing ever, by the way! It’s only 2.5 inches tall and it’s called “The Mommy Pot by Gail.” It has a card attached that says “For the short-stemmed flowers that the children bring home.” A family friend gave it to me when I was pregnant and I love it so much! I found a similar one here.)
Along with watering and picking the flowers, she has also learned to smell the flowers. She sniffs any and all plants that she sees now (which makes going for a walk an extremely long excursion!).
This got me thinking back to when I taught VPK. We used to teach a whole unit on investigating smell. L is only 18 months, but I figured it would be a fun thing for her to explore since she naturally showed interest.
I decided it was a great opportunity for me to create a “Smelly Lab” sensory activity. I’ve previously mentioned the benefits of sensory play. In the past, I’ve associated sensory play with the sense of touch (particularly touching with hands). It can (and should) include exploring the other senses as well (such as smell).
So, I went to the Dollar Tree and bought four salt and pepper shakers (for a total of $2). I brought them home and put an assortment of objects with very distinct and different smells into each. I didn’t buy anything special for this; I just chose things we had around the house. Our scents included: coffee beans, a few drops of peppermint essential oil on a cotton ball, a cinnamon stick, and a lemon wedge.
First, I set them out on L’s table for her to explore independently. She immediately picked the one with coffee beans up and shook it, which made a loud noise causing her to laugh. She didn’t think to try smelling them on her own, but once I showed her, she became obsessed! She crinkled her little nose up and took a big sniff of each one.
To help her make a connection between the scent and the object, we opened each shaker and took the items out for her to examine. I labeled (and verbally named) each shaker so there was a word for her to associate with each. To further strengthen the connection, I then showed her where the object was located in our house (the coffee beans in the canister on the kitchen counter, the lemon in the refrigerator, etc.).
My goal in this activity was to help her realize that our senses can help us explore, investigate, and understand the world around us. This was an “outside of the box” sensory activity that I created just by noticing her interests. She now realizes what it means to use her sense of smell (and not just for flowers).
Next week, I’m going to share how this activity inspired me to continue to be creative when it comes to sensory play.
What are your little learners into these days? What interests are they showing? I’d love to help you think of ways to create a learning opportunity!
Thanks for reading! I hope you continue to follow along to find (and share!) inspiration, information, and innovation! :-)