KAREN TUI BOYES
Gathering Data Through all our Senses
Photo Credit: Craig Burton
Using a Whole Body Approach to Strengthen Learning “The senses, being the explorers of the world, open the way to knowledge.” - Maria Montessori A necessary disposition for students to develop is to gather information through the senses. The senses collect information about the world and send it to the brain, and the brain uses this information to make sense of the world. Sensory receptors take in information automatically, unconsciously and simultaneously. It is interesting to note when one sensory pathway is blocked or inhibited, the other senses are heightened.
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There are two main sensory pathways - external and internal. All external information comes into the brain through sensory pathways. External pathways include:
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Visual - sights coming in through the eyes Auditory - sounds coming in through the ears Kinesthetic - movement and posture of the body Touch - the sensation felt through the skin Gustatory - the sense of taste in the mouth Olfactory - the smells inhaled through the nose Inner senses include pain, balance, thirst and hunger. These provide the brain information about the body and its needs. For example, the purpose of thirst is the body’s way of telling the brain it needs hydrating. Intelligent people observe the world. They use their senses to explore their surroundings and collect information or data through various pathways. Much of language comes from being open and observant
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to our environment from the senses. It is when people learn about textures, colours, patterns, sounds, tone, volume and so on that language is developed. In his book, Brain Rules, Dr John Medina shares research showing that students who are learning in a multi-sensory environment always do better than those in a uni-sensory environment. Naturally, a skill needs to be taught and experienced in the manner of its execution. For instance, riding a bike is predominantly a body, or kinesthetic skill. Simply watching bike riding videos and having someone demonstrate the riding techniques (mainly visual inputs) will not replace the authentic learning of physically getting on the bike. Professor Art Costa and Dr Bena Kallick, the founders of the Habits of Mind, say, “To know a wine it must be drunk; to know a role it must be acted; to know a game it must be played; to know a dance it must be moved; to know a goal it must be envisioned.” As memory is stored in neural circuits all over the brain, the more stimulus and input from different sensory pathways that is taken in, the easier recall will be and the longer a memory lasts. Bob Bourgault, Director of the Almond Acres Charter Academy, encourages teachers and students to be a ‘sense-ational’ thinker and involve as many senses as appropriate and possible. Evidence suggests that problem solvers come up with fifty percent more creative solutions when engaging their senses.
