Calling all scientists, explorers, and exhausted teachers who could use a hand planning science centers for the entire year with just one simple click of the mouse. 😉 Jokes and run-on sentences aside… lesson planning can be so time-consuming and overwhelming. These 5 Senses Activities for Preschoolers have been kid-tested and teacher-approved.  

Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers

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Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers – SIGHT

How to Teach the Sense of Sight

So much of the world around is observed through sight. Young scientists can practice learning about sight using the following:

• Mirrors
• Kaleidoscopes
• Magnifying glasses
• Books
• Eyeglasses
• Cameras
• Binoculars
• 3D glasses
• Sunglasses

A few books to include with this 5 senses activity are:

• Whose Eyes are These?
• Look Here!
• Our Eyes Can See
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

Rainbow Discovery Bottles are a fun and popular activity for the sense of sight.

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Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers – HEARING

How to Teach the Sense of Hearing

Always look for ways to incorporate literacy elements into every area, even the science center. These items are excellent choices for a sense of hearing activity:

• Telephones
• Seashells
• Bells
• Shaker toys
• Stethoscopes
• Instruments

Encourage children to make predictions about how each item might sound, and then allow them to explore independently.

A few related books to include with this 5 senses activity are:

• Hear This!
• Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?
• Our Ears Can Hear
• Down by the Station

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Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers – SMELL

How to Teach the Sense of Smell

Preschool kids will love this 5 Senses Science center activity. To make, fill salt and pepper shakers (readily available at the dollar store) with a variety of scents:

• Lavender
• Lemon
• Mint
• Vanilla
• Cinnamon
• Maple

Choose flavors that are easy to identify (like fruits, mint, floral). Food-grade extracts are taste-safe, sold at all grocery stores, and will likely not cause any adverse reactions like essential oils might. (Be sure to check with your school, administration, and parents about food allergies.)

To explore the Sense of Smell center, students choose 1 shaker and smell it. Then, they find the matching picture and identify the scent.

Print the small Sense of Smell cards (lavender, orange, peppermint, soap, vanilla, maple, etc.) pictured below HERE.

A few related books to include with this 5 senses activity are:

• Llama Llama Yum, Yum, Yum!
• Whose Nose is this?
• Our Noses Can Smell
• Smell it!

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Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers – TOUCH

How to Teach the Sense of Touch

Assemble this “hands-on” project in minutes as a perfect 5 senses activity for independent exploration.

Materials needed:

• Sturdy poster board or tri-fold board
• Hot glue
• Various textured items such as sandpaper, fabrics, bubble wrap, etc…

First, arrange the items on the sturdy board and use hot glue to attach them. Leave a little space between each item. Aim for 8 to 10 different textures for little fingers to explore.

Next, discuss how various items feel. Encourage learning and discussion with open-ended questions such as, “Does this feel like anything you might have at home?” Allow time for independent exploration where children can take their time with each item.

Click to see more pictures of the Sense of Touch board.

A few touch-and-feel books to include are:

• Touch and Feel Pets
• Quack Quack

This Best Play Dough Recipe is another excellent activity for exploring the sense of touch.

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Five Senses Activities for Preschoolers – TASTE

How to Explore the Sense of Taste

Children learn by doing. These taste tests are perfect five senses activities for circle time. Taste-testing is best as a teacher-led activity to avoid choking hazards.

First, discuss the sense of taste with students. Give them the vocabulary for taste buds and let them look for their own taste buds in a mirror.

Explain that the taste buds can taste 4 different flavors: salty, sour, bitter, and sweet.

Another taste-testing activity (which is a nice segue into a study of apples and autumn) is an apple testing poll. Let the students hypothesize how taste might differ between differently colored apples. After the students have tasted each apple slice, have them describe their experience in as much detail as possible. Some words that might be used include:

• juicy/drippy/wet
• crunchy/hard/loud/crisp
• shiny/dull/bright/dark
• mushy/soft
• sour/sweet/bitter/tangy

After the apple taste-test, create a class graph of favorite apples.

For more apple activity ideas, try this Apple Cinnamon Play Dough.

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Five Senses Science Centers

Studying the Five Senses is a great way to kick off an entire year of science investigations and learning.

Learning to use the five senses is an integral part of teaching preschoolers to learn more about the world around them!

When we explain to preschoolers that “Information gets into your brain through your senses!” it helps them tune into the process of learning.

It helps them learn how to be a learner!

Plan developmentally-appropriate SCIENCE CENTERS for the entire year. This Science Centers bundle includes over 40 centers as well as a student recording journal. Encourage young learners to ask questions, make observations, and develop scientific thinking skills.

This fast, convenient, and very popular Science Centers bundle is an easy digital download. Click, download, and print over 40 science centers faster than saying, “Where did the glue stick’s lid disappear to this time?”

For many more incredible sensory ideas to explore while learning about the five senses, visit this Sensory Activities – Preschool board on Pinterest.