Sense of Touch and Texture Painting

Kindergarten students at RES have been working on their Five Senses unit. They have done a variety of lessons and activities using their 5 senses. Today was our chance to focus on sense of touch. Mrs. O'Neil started the lesson by activating the students background knowledge and having the students recall some experiences when they used their sense of touch. After a short discussion we read Soft and Smooth, Rough and Bumpy by Dana Meachen Rau. This book generated lots of questions and allowed the students to make many connections.

Next we introduced the students to what items we would be mixing into our paint today. For our lesson we used dried leaves, coffee, crushed pretzels, rosemary, and sand mixed with the paint. Students passed around the items in cups, but not mixed with the paint, to get a chance to feel each item. Many of the students made the realization that several of their senses came into play during this time. Not only were they using their sense of touch, but sight and smell as well. We then brainstormed a list of words to describe what we felt when we touched each object.

The students then had the chance to use this graphic organizer (Sense of Touch) that Mrs. O'Neil created. Students dipped their fingers into the paint and painted in the box. Once they had painted in the box they were to draw a line to the object they thought was in each color. Students then shared with the teacher at least one thing they discovered during this experiment. We recorded that on the bottom of the paper for the students.

After they shared, students were allowed to use the leftover paint to create any masterpiece their heart desired.

We brought the students back to the carpet for a discussion about our discoveries. Students shared what they thought was in each color and what helped them to think this way. This was an opportunity to connect back to the theme of the lesson and bring in our knowledge about how our senses work together.