Ms.

Markerts Sensory Centre

Overview: This inquiry-based Kindergarten centre is built around a
science concept: the five senses. There are items in the centre that
allow students to explore four of the five senses: touch, sound, smell,
and sight. It begins as a discovery table and progresses into goaloriented play. During the time the centre is open to the classroom,
students are read stories on the 5 senses. The stories provide students
with information that will help them gain further value from the items
in the centre each time they visit it.
Learning Outcomes:
Early Literacy
General Outcome: The child listens, speaks, reads, writes,
views, and represents to comprehend and respond personally
and critically to oral, print, and other media texts
o Uses prior knowledge connects oral language with print
and pictures
o Experiences various texts participates in shared
listening, reading and viewing experiences, using oral,
print, and other media texts; listens and views attentively
Environment and Community Awareness
General Outcome: the child demonstrates curiosity, interest,
and a willingness to learn about the environment and community
o The child becomes aware of the five senses and how they
are used to explore, investigate, and describe the world
o Explores and investigates objects and events in the
environment
o Demonstrates awareness of properties of objects and
events in the environment by: describing some properties,
sorting objects according to common properties, matching
objects or events as being the same or going together, and
distinguishing between similar objects, based on one or
more characteristics
Personal and Social Responsibilities
General Outcome: the child contributes to group activities
o Listens to peers and adults
o Takes turns in activities and discussions
o Works cooperatively with a partner or in a group
o Demonstrates sharing behavior
Centre Components:
Sound: 8 sound shakers. Small containers with clear snap-on
lids, each with a different material. Materials include: rice,

sunflower seeds, salt, sand, coins, pom-poms, foam shapes, and

small gems. A crinkly ball is also included.
Smell: 6 scent bottles. Small bottles with squeeze tops are
filled with different scents. Students open the tops and squeeze
the bottles to release the scent. Scents include: cinnamon
powder, clove powder, garlic, body lotion, toothpaste, and
vanilla.
Touch: A variety of touch components are included in the centre.
There is a tray of feathers, a tray of pom poms, a tray of
sponges, and a set of tinsel. There is also a board with snippets
of 5 different materials glued to it: foam, felt, scratchy paper, fur,
and a plastic material. There are 5 matching Kleenex boxes with
a piece of each material glued to the bottom. Students reach
their hands into the Kleenex boxes without looking inside and try
to match the material to the ones on the board
Sight: 5 mini-mirrors, 4 magnifying glasses, 3 flashlights

Stories:
Hearing, no author, published by Av2 by Weigl
Smell, no author, published by AV2 by Weigl
Taste, no author, published by AV2 by Weigl
Sight, no author, published by AV2 by Weigl
Touch, no author, published by AV2 by Weigl
Instruction/Progression
Students first explore all of the different materials independently as
they like to. To promote exploration of each material, they are
introduced one at a time, (sound, smell, touch, then sight). Once they
have had an initial chance to explore each one, they are free to
experiment with them however they wish. Students are encouraged to
use the items in the sight centre to further investigate the other senses
(i.e., use magnifying glasses and flashlights to look closely at feathers).
The stories will be read progressively over time. Each student will be
able to visit the centre at least once between the time each story is
read. This way, they have a chance to process the information from
one story and explore it in relation to the centre before moving onto
the next sense.
Over time, specific activities and goals will be introduced to the centre,
such as creating a soundscape, distinguishing between types of
sounds, and more.