Send Your Senses Soaring!

Allegory of the Five Senses

by Gérard de Lairesse, 1668

Five Minute
Creativity Boost
by Monica Davis
© 2012

What is creativity? By definition it is: “the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns...and create [bring into being] meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations.”  We humans love to create...and recreate; to bring forth and nurture originality as if it were our precious child; to push the boundaries of “Why?” and ask, “Why not?”

Have you tasted the stroke of midnight? Heard fruit ripening on the vine? Ever held a shooting star in the palm of your hand? Smelled tomorrow? Seen the fragrance of a rose? 

The logical part of our brain says: “Not possible”; “Doesn't exist”; “Can't do it”; “Human senses don't work that way.”. But the creative part of our brain rises to the challenge and attempts the seemingly impossible: “Stroke of midnight? Hmm, rich, decadent, tangy...delicious!”

Five Minutes, Five Senses!

A simple 5-minute exercise may boost your creativity, bring clarity to your thoughts, open your imagination, and yes, aid memory. The exercise is done in 4 steps. Focus your attention on each individual sense (taste, sight, touch, smell, hearing) one at a time, and fully engage in that particular sense before moving on to the next. (Eyes may be open or closed.)

Step 1: Experience familiar sensations.  

Taste

• Taste cold, juicy watermelon
• Chocolate melting in your mouth
• Bite into a sour lemon

Sight

• Watch a beautiful sunset
• See the smiling face of a happy child
• Watch a bird fly across the sky

Touch

• Pet the soft fur of a kitten
• Walk barefoot along a sandy beach
• Make a snowball with your bare hands

Smell

• Inhale the aroma of freshly brewed coffee
• Smell a pine forest
• Smell an ocean breeze

Hear

• Listen as a distant train whistle grows louder, then fades away
• Hear a clock strike five o'clock
• Hear the sound of raindrops on a tin roof

Step 2: Apply all five senses to a single experience; such as baking bread.

• Knead the dough with your hands
• Smell the bread baking in the oven
• See the golden color of the freshly baked loaf
• Hear the crunch of the crust as you bite into it
• Taste the flavors as you savor a slice spread with melting butter

Step 3: Experience each sense through obscure and unusual combinations. This allows the creative side of the brain to join in, trying to answer a riddle. (Don't get hung up or struggle; just go with whatever comes and move on. With practice, your creative brain will know what to do.) For example:

• Taste the air inside a bubble
• Walk along the red stripe of a rainbow
• Hear wax shine
• Smell square
• See an echo in a canyon
  
  

Step 4: Mix up your bread baking senses. For example:

• See the crunch of the crust
• Smell the ingredients into forming a dough
• Taste the color of the finished loaf
• Hear the flavor of melting butter spread on a warm slice
• Touch the aroma of the baking loaf
  
  

A gifted storyteller moves an audience through all senses: hearing, sight, touch, smell and taste to create a truly satisfying and magical experience. Heightening the senses gives the brain more avenues for memory recall; no longer relying solely on rote data filing, but recalling feelings, sensations and associations.

From once upon a time, to happily ever after is just five senses away.

© 2012 Monica Davis
About the author: Monica Davis is an accomplished writer, editor, speaker and creative consultant. She is the author of the soon to be released non-fiction book, “Wisdom of the Toga: Mythic Patterns That Shape Our Lives”. For more information, please visit her website at: www.wisdomofthetoga.com

 

Monica Davis is a guest blogger for Karen Chace and Catch the Storybug blog. All rights to this article belong to Monica. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without her expressed, written  permission. If you would like to be a Guest Blogger contact Karen at Storybug@aol.com for the details.

Let's Swim with the Fishes!

The Sea King and the Magic Jewels
by Warwick Goble, 1912

Let's go swimming with the fishes today! Here are some fingerplays, songs and story stretchers from my lapsit program. Further below you will find another link for stories, crafts and more. Happy fishing!

FINGERPLAYS

Teasing Mr. Shark (Tune: 5 Little Monkeys Swinging in a Tree)
Five little fishes, Swimming in the sea.
Teasing Mr. Shark, You can`t catch me, you can`t catch me.
Along comes Mr. Shark, As quiet as can be...

Snap! The little fish right out of the sea!
(Repeat with four little fishes, etc...down to one.)
Now Mr. Shark is lonely as can be!

 

Five Little Fishies

Five little fishies, swimming in a pool
(Wiggle five fingers)
The first one said, "The pool is cool."
(Show one finger, then wrap arms around body)
The second one said, "The pool is deep."
(Show two fingers, then hands measure 'deep')
The third one said, "I want to sleep."
(Show three fingers, then rest head on hands)
The fourth one said, "Let's take a dip." (Show four fingers, then hands 'dive' into water)
The fifth one said, "I spy a ship." (Show five fingers, then form scope with hands to peer through)
Fisher boat comes, (Form 'V' with fingers, then move hands away from body)
Line goes kersplash (Pretend to throw fishing line)
Away the five little fishies dash, dash, dash! (Wiggle five fingers away)

STORY STRETCH

Have You Ever Gone A Fishin

Have you ever gone a fishin' on a warm summers day, 
Have you ever seen the fishies just a playin' in the bay?
With their hands in their pockets and their pockets in their pants,
Have you ever seen the Fishies doin' the Hootchie-Kootchie dance? 

You never did, you never will, boom, boom.
Have you ever gone a fishin' on a cold winter’s day?
Have you ever seen the fishies just a frozen in the bay?
With their hands in their pockets and their pockets in their pants,
Have you ever seen the fishies do the Hootchie-Kootchie dance? 

You never did, you never will.
Have you ever gone a fishin' on a warm spring day?
Have you ever seen the fishies just a swimmin' in the bay?
With their hands in their pockets and their pockets in their pants,
Have you ever seen the fishies doin' the Hootchie-Kootchie dance?
You never did, you never will, boom, boom.

SONG

Slippery Fish

Slippery Fish, Slippery Fish....
Swimming through the water ( use hands to act out fish swimming through the water)
Slippery Fish , Slippery Fish
Gulp, Gulp ( Each time you say Gulp...use hands on either side of mouth and slide down throat)
OH NO ! (When you say this, put hands on face)
He got eaten by........

A Tuna Fish, A Tuna Fish.....
Swimming through the water (use hands to act out a tuna fish swimming through the water)
A Tuna Fish, A Tuna Fish
Gulp, Gulp
OH NO!
He got eaten by........

An Octopus, an Octopus....
Swimming through the water ( use arms and wave them up and down for Octopus arms)
An Octopus, an Octopus...
Gulp, Gulp
OH NO !
He got eaten by.......

A Great Big Shark, A Great Big Shark....
swimming through the water (use arms from elbows to hands to look like a shark mouth opening and closing)
A Great Big Shark, A Great Big Shark.....
Gulp, Gulp
OH NO!
He got eaten by....

A Big Fat Whale, A Big Fat Whale.....
swimming through the water ( Use a deep voice and hold arms out to your sides to look like a Big Fat Whale)
A Big Fat Whale, A Big Fat Whale....
Burp, Burp....
EXCUSE ME! ( use a higher voice to say this part)

STORIES, CRAFTS AND CURRICULUM

Stop by this blog post I wrote a while back and add some more fuel to your story and classroom fire!

Trolling for Tales
http://tinyurl.com/6fj293h

Karen Chace 2012 ©

This blog post was researched and compiled by Karen Chace. Permission for private use is granted. Distribution, either electronically or on paper is prohibited without my expressed written permission. For permission please contact me at storybug@aol.com. Of course, if you wish to link to my blog via your website, blog, newsletter, Facebook page or Twitter please feel free to do so; I greatly appreciate your support and personal integrity.