Why we love Sense of the Day
Mindfulness enables us to participate more fully in our lives, be responsive rather than reactive and understand and manage our emotions.
We often forget to tune into our senses, or rely largely on our sense of sight.
This activity helps children discover and focus on their lesser-used senses, so they can find new ways to be present and enjoy the moment. As can we!
What to do
Set up a few sensory items to discover only using your senses. We recommend around 5 experiences each day for a week - handy ideas below. That'll be a nice way to have lots of mini-mindful moments and begin forming mindful habits and enjoying moments using ALL our senses more.
To help get your kids thinking about their senses, ask:
- So what are the different ways we can notice or experience something? (Sight, smell, touch, sound, taste.)
- And what are these things called? (Our senses!)
- Which senses do we notice most? Which do we often forget about?
- What are your favourite sensory activities? (Baking, eating, walking on the beach, smelling candles, noticing the feel of nice materials.)
Starting any day, set up 1-5 fun tactile things that you can all try using each sense with. E.g.
- Smell: Lemon/lime, popcorn, chilli paste, pine needles, saw dust, grass, cotton wool with lavendar.
- Touch: Cotton wool, pinecones, sand, fur, moss, stones, drift wood.
- Taste: Chocolate, orange, marmite, cheese, raisins, rock melon, pretzels.
- Sight: Windmills, kaleidoscope, colours, photos, or try this optical Illusions website for kids.
- Sound: Instruments and auditory items or play Guess the sound (hide pictures and pause after each noise to let them guess!).
Ways to use Sense of the Day everyday
It's all about stopping and remembering to do it... hate to say it, but set a kind tone 'alarm' on your watch or phone each day and commit to it then
If you notice something - a rose in the garden, a leaf changed from green to red, a native bird - challenge yourself to notice it for longer and engage your senses in the moment.
