Sensory Poetry

This activity is an extension of Juicy, Crispy, Crunch, so once you’ve completed that, ask tamariki to use their worksheet to help write a piece of free writing (or poetry) about the apple.

Having the worksheet as a foundation should help generate ideas, but you could repeat this with any item you like, e.g. a tree in the school grounds, a sunny day, a flower, a friend etc.

Another option is to ask students to do some free writing (no rules) using their senses and one or more of the following story starters.

• The first piece begins with, I see…
• The second piece begins with, I hear…
• The third piece begins with, I am feeling…
  

We would love to see these poems!

Send them to us and we’ll happily send a thank you and perhaps use them as web or Facebook content.

Tamariki craft a piece of creative writing based on a sensory experience (tuning into our senses).

Encouraging tamariki to think about their senses helps them develop mindfulness skills – namely taking notice and being in the moment.

This activity reminds students how it felt to slow down and use their senses, by giving them the opportunity to write creatively about their Juicy, Crispy, Crunch experience.

Try one of our sensory craft activities, like Smiley Stress Balls or our other awesome activity, Sensory Kete

If you think it may be useful for whānau to give Sensory Poetry a go, simply copy and paste the following 'blurb' into an email or your home-learning programme as an introduction.

In the classroom we've been practising thinking about our senses which in turn helps develop our mindfulness skills – namely taking notice and being in the moment. Science says that practicing these types of activities gives our wellbeing a boost!

Sparklers at Home has the same activity, Sensory Poetry we've been trying in the classroom, as an activity ready for home use. It would be great if you could give this a try with your child, and practice with them. They'll be familiar with it, so it will be exciting for you to write your poem together.

This activity is based around an idea from The Exercise Book edited by Bill Manhire, Ken Duncum, Chris Price and Damien Wilkins. This is a fantastic book to encourage tamariki to write creatively, and, we love it even more because it’s from our very own Aotearoa creative writing experts.