This ice-breaker game is part of the resources made available by Earthchild Project, used by our facilitators in under-resourced schools in South Africa. Additional lesson plans, games, songs and a Seed Pack guide to teaching holistic education can be found at: Earthchildproject.org/teaching-resources
SILENT SENSE WALK
Walking in silence and becoming more aware of our senses can open up a whole new world of discovery when spending time in nature. To make it more exciting for children, you can start the silent walk with an introduction to Elephant Ears and Owl Eyes.
Elephants have excellent hearing because of their huge ears which can pick up the faintest sounds. “Let’s pretend to have elephant ears!” Ask the children (or adults) to cup their hands behind their ears and notice the difference in the sounds they can pick up. Ask them to figure out the most distant sound they can hear, and the total number of different sounds they can identify.
Owls have amazing eyesight… they can turn their heads 360 degrees, can see very far away and have excellent peripheral vision. “Let’s see how good our owl eyes are!” Ask them to look straight ahead and hold their arms out to the side. Wiggling their fingers and slowly moving forward until they can see the movement out the corners of their eyes.
Now using your special animal senses you can begin a short silent walk. The intention is to be more alert and aware of ones surroundings, paying
attention to the detail. After 5 – 10 minutes you can pause and each person can have a chance to share one thing that they saw or heard because they were paying special attention.
These teaching resources are freely offered by Earthchild, to support others in their journey connecting children to themselves, others and the environment. Support our work with Earth Children from under-resourced communities by donating.