Smell

Song: Five Senses Song, plus...this is a tough one--if you have anything good, let me know!  Here's a rhyme I found. You can substitute any smell for the first line:

Rhyme:

The toast is burning!

How do I know?

My nose told my brain,

So it must be so.

Books: Smelling by Robin Nelson, My Five Senses by Aliki
Craft: scent cards
Outside: see if you can find different smells outside
Snack: anything with a strong scent--strawberries, bananas, chocolate, tomatoes, etc.

Supplies needed:

• a fridge and spice cupboard full of interesting smells (this should be an easy one!)
• notecards
• paintbrush
• liquids with strong smells to paint with: almond/lemon extract, vanilla, Tabasco, soy sauce, Kool-Aid mixed with water, etc.

Being with the songs, ending with Five Senses Song.  Explain that today we're going to learn about our sense of smelling.  Read Smelling, then talk about how we use our noses to smell.

Head to the kitchen and find some fun things to smell in the fridge (you can have them close their eyes if you'd like to have them guess).  After they've tried a few, have them plug their noses and then try to smell.  We can't smell without our noses!

Other fun things to smell around the house: spice cupboard, laundry detergent, candles, air fresheners, perfume, deodorant, lotions, toothpaste--go on a scent hunt!  See what you can find that smells good or that smells bad.  

Head back to the table and give them some notecards and a paintbrush.  Put a small amount of liquid in individual bowls, then let them paint away!  Watch them carefully with Tabasco--make sure they don't touch their skin with the sauce.

Once they're done, head outside for another scent hunt.  Tell why you're grateful for your nose and what you like to smell with it!

Additional ideas:

• have them try to TASTE with their nose plugged.  Explain that our nose and our tongue work together to taste things.  If we can't smell, we can't taste very well.  Works great for yucky medicine!