Five Senses and Four Seasons Quilt

Summary

Students will help make a Five Senses and Four Seasons quilt and cinquain poem.

Materials

One per class:

• Four 24” x 24” butcher paper squares, one in green, yellow, blue, and orange
• One 57” x 57” piece of black butcher paper
• My Circle of Seasons

One per student:

• 8” x 8” square of white construction paper
• Markers or crayons
• Glue

Additional Resources

• My Favorite Time of Year, by Susan Person; ISBN 0590-46353-5
• Caps, Hats, Socks, and Mittens, by Louise Borden; ISBN 0-590-72429-0
• Snowy, Flowy, Blowy, by Nancy Tufari; ISBN0-590-18973-5
• The Four Seasons, by Ruth Thomson; ISBN 0-918831-63-6
• Names of Snow, by Judi K. Beach; ISBN 078681937-5

Background for Teachers

Each of the four seasons has general characteristics that makes it different from the rest. We can use our five senses to discover different attributes of each season. We smell different things, hear different sounds, taste different foods, have different activities, and see changes around us as the seasons rotate through the year. We use different words when we describe different seasons. This activity is a culminating activity about seasons. Students will be able to demonstrate the many attributes they've discovered about each season using corporative learning.

Intended Learning Outcomes

1. Demonstrate a positive learning attitude.
2. Develop social skills and ethical responsibility
5. Understand and use basic concepts and skills.

Instructional Procedures

Invitation to Learn
Ask the class the following set of questions:

• Would you go snow skiing in summer?
• Do you pick apples in spring?
• When do you eat watermelon?
• When do you hear sprinklers?
• Can you smell flowers outside in the winter? Why not?

Instructional Procedures

1. Today we are going to make a Five Senses and Four Seasons quilt. Read the book My Circle of Seasons by Gerda Muller
2. Divide the class into four different seasonal groups. (You may assign groups or let students choose so that the numbers will be even.)
3. Give each group an 8" x 8" piece of white construction paper. Have each group brainstorm about how the five senses help us learn about the season it has been assigned. Have one person in each group draw something that s/he can hear, see, feel, taste, or smell. Each group should have four squares with pictures draw using markers or crayons.
   
4. For the center square each group will write a cinquain about their season.
   A cinquain is written in this order:

   First line--one word (name something you see)
   Second line--two words (use words that describe how it feels)
   Third line--three words (something you hear)
   Fourth line--four words (something to taste or smell)
   Fifth line--one word (name of the season)

5. Glue each of the five squares (four pictures and one poem) onto the colored butcher paper square that matches the season: blue for winter, green for spring, yellow for summer, and orange for fall.
6. Glue each 24" square onto the black paper leaving a 3" border around each square.
7. Review the pictures and the cinquains with the class. Have the class guess the last line of each cinquain. The teacher may want to discuss other possibilities for pictures.

Extensions

Additional Language Arts Activities

1. Let each student make a small book entitled In Summer I Like to _________. Individual books may be created in class or as homework.
2. Make a class book entitled Guess When. On the top half, each student writes a question about a season and one of the senses, such as, "Guess when you drink hot chocolate?" Or "Guess when I hear crunchy leaves?" The bottom half shows the illustration and answer, but is covered with a half sheet of colored paper so the answer can't be seen (see illustration).
   

Family Connections

• Students may identify, draw, and label things they see, hear, smell, taste, and touch in their homes or neighborhoods during each season. When these papers are returned, they may be placed in their portfolios and brought out to examine before beginning this activity.
• Send home the Guess When book for families to share together.

Assessment Plan

The students can be assessed as they share their ideas about how they use their five senses in each season. The artwork and cinquain suggestions will also be an indicator as to whether students understand about each season and about the five senses.