Sensory Detail
Goal: To describe a setting based on what they see, hear, smell and feel (probably best not to encourage tasting the setting, unless they happen to be in a garden).
Support material: Read Your Own Best Secret Place or The Other Way to Listen, by Byrd Baylor Instructions: 1. Ask students how they might describe a scene using all of their senses. Sight: describe the foreground, mid-ground and the distant landscape from their spot. Smell: they might have to rub a leaf, sniff a flower, or smell the soil. Feel: Students can describe the texture of the soil, grass, or branches in their spot. Sound: describe the natural and unnatural sounds they hear, excluding the sounds of other kids' voices. 2. Read a sample Sensory Detail Journal entry, at right. 3. Find a natural setting that is conducive to spreading kids out, hopefully out of sight from each other, but within earshot of the teacher. 4. Once kids have settled into their place, allow five minutes to sit quietly and listen. 5. After five minutes, provide a signal for students to begin writing. 6. Allow ten minutes to write their journal entry. |
Sample:
The sun shines overhead, bright in my eyes and taking away all shadows. In the distance, the Elk Mountains form the horizon from left to right, with Sopris marking the west end and the sharp edge of Capital Peak in the middle. Rolling hills of green lead down from the high peaks to the valley floor. There are no buildings out there. I feel the heat of the sun on my skin, and on the rocky soil. The red stones and dirt beneath me absorb the sun, and it is dry and dusty. The only smell I notice is the dust as dirt pours through my fingers. A crow or raven squawks as it flies overhead, and a few songbirds call out from hidden places. I don't know what they are, but there are at least three different kinds of calls. An airplane flies overhead. Once it's gone, the birds are the only sound I hear. Ruby 5th grade |