Kick off summer with an exciting line-up of teaching ideas, activities, and inspiration for June! Enjoy a FREE mini sensory story for Butterfly Education Day, set up a dinosaur dig on Dinosaur Day, and explore superhero superfoods during Healthy Eating Week. Dive into the fascinating world of minibeasts to celebrate Insect Week, embrace mindfulness with a morning routine yoga story on International Yoga Day, and add a cosmic twist to your PE session. Get creative with strawberry fields sensory art and mark the arrival of the summer solstice trying new skills using task boxes.
Dates at a Glance
June 1 Dinosaur Day
June 7 Butterfly Education & Awareness Day
June 8 Whitsun
June 10 -14 Healthy Eating Week
June 23 – 29 Insect Week
June 21 Summer Solstice
June 21 International Yoga Day
Jul 4 Independence Day
June 1st
Dinosaur Day
Celebrate the day the sensory way!
Dinosaur Dig This sensory play engages the senses, fine motor skills as the student manipulates the objects, problem-solving through experimentation, and creativity & imagination through exploration. You will need
- Box/tray/Tuff Tray
- Sand/soil/stones/pebbles/twigs/leaves/grass (for a less mess option replace the sand/soil with dried pulses, barley/lentils, and/or dried beans)
- Toy dinosaurs/cotton wool buds (bones), shells (fossils)
- Items to promote fine motor skills: lidded containers (for storing your finds) paintbrushes (assorted sizes), a sieve for sifting the sand/soil/pulses, spoons, a toothbrush, scoops, and a jug of water.
- Items to promote scientific investigation: camera, magnifying glass, notebook, and a pencil (for recording findings), ruler, torch
- Bury pinecones and pine branches (pine trees were around in pre-historic times!)
Tip
Take learning outdoors and re-create your archaeological dig in the sandpit. (If you do not have a sandpit then a tomato grow bag is a good alternative)
Tip
Replace the sand with taste safe ‘sand’ by mixing flour, crushed cereal (Rice Krispies or Cornflakes are ideal) and adding a little water to reach your preferred consistency. Option to add spices (cinnamon will give an authentic soil brown colour)
Encourage the sensory explorers to use the tools to unearth treasure and record their findings
Extend Learning
Add items not found in prehistoric times e.g., coins, dice, a Lego brick, a toy car, a stainless steel, or plastic spoon
Can the sensory explorer recognise these items as being the red herrings?
(SALT) Promote Functional Language
Can the sensory explorer name the item?
Can the sensory explorer tell you what the item is used for? If they are unsure, then provide plenty of clues.
Can the sensory explorer tell you why they think the item would not have been invented in prehistoric times?
June 7th
Butterfly Education & Awareness Day (BEAD)
A day to raise awareness and celebrate butterflies.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Sensory Story
Based on the book by Eric Carle, this activity connects students to literature and engages the senses providing the opportunity for students to explore and express their likes, dislikes and sensory preferences giving them a voice and a choice.
You will need:
- Torch
- Leaf
- Egg (Pop a drop of glue on the leaf then leave to dry)
- Red and green pipe cleaners
- Apple
- Pear
- Plum
- Strawberries
- Oranges
- ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ book by Eric Carle
Read ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ story by Eric Carle presenting the props/sensory stimuli as they appear in the story.
- The Leaf: Dim the lights then shine the torch onto the leaf. Can the sensory explorer find the egg? Explore cause and effect, can the students use turn the torch ON/OFF independently?
- The Caterpillar: Promote fine motor skills. Can the sensory explorer twist red and green pipe cleaners to make a caterpillar?
- The Fruit: Engage the senses and explore likes, dislikes and sensory preferences. Offer the apples, pears, plums, strawberries and oranges for the sensory explorer to touch, smell and taste. Can the students choose between two preferred items? Can the sensory explorer make a rejection if they do not like any of the items?
- The Other Foods: Print out and laminate a matching board with the chocolate cake, ice cream, Swiss cheese, salami, lollipop, cherry pie, sausage, melon, and a cupcake. Print out a set of matching pictures. Can the sensory explorer match the correct picture to the one on the matching board?
Extend Learning
Cut the pictures out.
Can the sensory explorer place the pictures in the correct order that the items appear in the story?
5. The Lettuce Leaf: Present lettuce leaves for the students to touch, smell and taste.
Tip: A mixed bag of salad presents a range of colours, tastes and textures for the sensory explorer to explore.
Discuss healthy eating. Can the sensory explorer group the food items into healthy foods and foods you would eat as a treat? (Link to ‘Healthy Eating Week 10-14 June)
6. The Cocoon: Can the sensory explorer climb into a sleeping bag or stretch in a body sock like the caterpillar?
7. The Butterfly: Open a parachute and move it up and down slowly like the wings of a butterfly.
Parachute Game:
- Place plastic fruits on the parachute.
- Can the sensory explorer keep the fruit on the parachute as it is lifted up and down?
- If the fruits drop, can the students catch and name them.
Extend Learning:
Can the sensory explorer retell the story using the props?
Alternative Activity:
Can the sensory explorer make a fruit kebab containing the correct quantities of fruit as they appear in the story? (One apple, two (pieces of) pear, three (pieces of) plums, four strawberries, five (pieces of) oranges?
Health & Safety Guidance
- Be Allergy Aware
- Beware of Potential Choking Hazards (remove pips/stones/seeds)
Non-Food Alternative Activity
Read the story then explore dried fruit peel, scented body lotions/creams and/or essential oils.
Does the sensory explorer show a preference for a scent or make a rejection if they do not like a scent?
Guidance: When working with scents, start at a distance and work your way towards the person taking their lead as to some individuals, smells may be overpowering.
Plant a butterfly garden
You will need:
- Bowl
- Wildflower seeds
- Tissue paper
- Water
- Spoon
Method
- Tear or cut the tissue paper into tiny pieces and place into the bowl.
- Add the wildflower seeds.
- Mix using a spoon or your hands.
- Add a little water to bind.
- Roll into balls.
- Leave to dry on a sunny windowsill.
- Throw or plant into the garden/outdoor area.
- Watch as your garden/outdoor area transforms into a carpet of colour!
- At the end of summer, harvest the dried seeds and store in a paper bag ready to plant next year!
Explore the life cycle of a butterfly
If you have a class budget, purchase a butterfly growing kit. Raise and feed your own butterflies watching them transform from caterpillars to adult butterflies before releasing into the wild.
‘Strawberry Fields’ by Austyn
Strawberry Fields Sensory Art
This stunning piece of sensory art was sent in by Austyn (Aged 9)
(Thanks to his teacher Jude)
Re-Create Austyn’s Artwork
You will need
- Canvas/paper/card
- Scourer
- Brown paint
- Red paint
- Fine paintbrush
- Foam
Activity
1. Create the texture of the field by applying brown paint to the canvas/paper/card using a scourer.
2. Draw a strawberry shape on a piece of paper, place on a piece of foam and cut around it. 3. Dip the foam into red paint then print onto the canvas/paper/card.
4. Create the green leaves and stalks of the strawberries by finger painting.
5. Dip the end of a paint brush in yellow paint then dot onto the strawberries to create the seeds.
On this Day in History
3rd June 1965
Astronaut Ed White became the first American to conduct a spacewalk.
Activity Idea
Walking on the Moon This activity will build strength, balance and promote physical development and can take place in the classroom, outdoor area or in the PE hall as part of a PE session. Create a moonscape adventure obstacle course using PE equipment.
- Crawl through the tunnels of the rocket: Tunnel/blanket/scramble net.
- Descend the rocket steps: Steps/balance beam/balance bar.
- Follow the footprints of aliens: Throw down feet/stilts/giant foam feet/stompers.
- Navigate moon rocks: Lay a sensory pathway using hula hoops/balance steps/’River Stones’/stepping logs.
- Take a ride on a moon buggy: Scooter board/balance board/’Saturn Skippers’, space hopper
- See how high you can bounce on the moon: Trampoline/mini trampoline/space hopper
- Catch the floating picnic items: Place plastic/toy food (fruit/paper plates etc) on a parachute, waft upwards to make the fruit float then catch the fruit in the parachute as it lands.
Tip! Create a space landscape in your soft playroom. Place black material on the floor to represent space or a black hole then make an obstacle course by placing foam wedges/rockers/gym mats/balance balls/beanbags/pillows/cushions around the room. Invite the students to navigate their way through space in their rocket over the soft play equipment avoiding falling into the black hole?
Invite the students make their movements slow and bouncy taking large, slow leaps around the room like an astronaut?
Idea!
Play space music or space sound effects (e.g., space shuttle launch, cargo door closing, engines roaring, fans, mission control countdown from ten, radio waves, windstorm, beep, drone, matrix, ambient space sound) in the background.
Take Learning Outdoors
If you have outdoor play equipment/climbing wall/frame create a story around the equipment e.g., climbing the ladders to descend the rocket then re-create a spacewalk using the play equipment.
Have a budget?
Consider purchasing a set of Sound Steps. These are foam stepping-stones that play sound recordings (up to 30 seconds) when you step on them. Perfect for your sensory adventures!
10th – 14th June
Healthy Eating Week
Explore Superhero Superfoods*
Add excitement to the topic of healthy eating by exploring superhero superfoods!
Present a wide range of different tastes and textures for the individual to explore at their own pace.
Initial explorations could be through touch and smell, the next step to present a tiny touch to the lips progressing onto a morsel or a drop in the mouth, an egg spoon full then building up to a full bite.
*Be Allergy Aware!
Popeye knew that spinach was packed with vitamins to make him strong and healthy!
Explore Healthy Green Foods: Apples, Avocados, Beans, Broccoli, Courgettes, Cucumber, Green Peppers, Kiwi, Lettuce, Watercress.
Ironman needs foods containing iron in his diet: Broccoli, Dark Chocolate, Dried Apricots, Legumes (Beans, Lentils, Chickpeas, Peas, and Soybeans), Pumpkin Seeds, Spinach, Tofu.
Superman’s Superfoods
Apples, Avocados, Bananas, Blackberries, Beans, Blueberries, Carrots, Cauliflower, Cherries, Courgettes, Figs, Fish Oils, Flaxseed, Garlic, Grapefruit, Herbs, Kiwi, Melon, Onion, Pepper, Plums, Pulses, Pumpkin, Rye, Spices, Strawberry, Watercress.
*Excerpt from ‘Superheroes – A Multisensory Adventure!’
D & T Food Activity
Make Lettuce Wraps
You will need
- Washed Whole Lettuce Leaves
- Herbs: Basil, Chives, Coriander, Dill, Mint, Mustard Seeds, Paprika, Parsley
- Salad Items: Beetroot, Cherry Tomatoes, Cress, Cucumber, Spring Onions, Watercress
- Cheese Slice, Croutons
- Coleslaw, Pickled Onions, Red Cabbage
- Dips: Aioli, Guacamole, Hummus, Onion Dip, Raita, Salsa, Sour Cream, Tzatziki,
- Condiments: Balsamic Vinegar, Mayonnaise, Piccalilli, Salad Cream, Vinaigrette,
Method
- Lay the lettuce leaf flat.
- Add the ingredients
- Top with a dip or condiment
- Roll
- Eat!
June 8th Whitsun
Whitsun is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter. It is a Christian celebration marking the coming of the Holy Spirit.
There are many traditional activities associated with Whitsun including fetes, fairs, pageants, parades, walks and Morris dancing.
Explore Morris Dancing
Watch footage of Morris Dancing
Invite the sensory explorer to explore movements to form a Morris Dance?
You will need
- Handkerchiefs
- Ankle & Wrist Bells
- Jingle Bell Shakers
- Ribbons
- Garlands (weave ribbons through a hula hoop)
- Straw Hats
Alternative Activity
Morris Dancer Sensory Box
- Layer a box with shredded paper.
- Place items related to Morris Dancing into the box: Handkerchiefs, Ankle & Wrist Bells, Jingle Bell Shakers, Ribbons and Garlands.
- Encourage the sensory explorer to place their hand inside the box and choose and item to explore.
- Model the item’s function. Can the sensory explorer copy your actions? Model the language.
- To add a little interest, dim the lights and use a torch to explore the items. A wind-up Dynamo torch will promote fine motor skills, a head torch provides a ‘hands free’ option.
Insect Week June 23rd – June 29th
Minibeast Hunt
Learning about mini beasts develops knowledge and understanding of the world and caring for the wildlife and the environment. Outdoor learning enables students to engage all of the senses.
Explore different outdoor settings: a park, garden, fields, forests, the beach and the woods. Take a magnifying glass.
Can the student find and observe: A beetle, butterfly, ladybird, moth, spider, snail, centipede, grasshopper, ant, wasp, bee, woodlouse, earwig, slug, worm?
Health & Safety Do not touch the insects
Look for habitats
- Invite the sensory explorer to find a spider’s web?
- Invite the sensory explorer to gently lift a stone and observe what is living underneath?
- Invite the sensory explorer to look in shrubs, under leaves, in the soil, ponds and hedges?
- Invite the sensory explorer to look underneath a log to find a micro habitat.
Suggested Resource
‘Minibeasts – A Multisensory Exploration’
Explore the world of the minibeasts with this multisensory story and themed, sensory extension activities
June 21st
International Yoga Day
Yoga is relaxing and good for the mind and body.
The following are suggested poses and do not have to be exact, focus on relaxation and exploring and enjoying movement.
Yoga is best practiced with bare feet on a mat.
Always stretch very gently and never force movement.
It is fun to adapt a story into a yoga session.
Morning Routine Yoga Story
‘It’s 7am and you are asleep’
Invite participants to lie on their back, arms by their sides like soldiers.
(Corpse Pose)
‘At 7.30am the alarm rings, roll over to switch it off’
Invite participants to roll onto their right side and stretch their left arm to turn an imaginary alarm clock off – option to use sound effects.
It’s time to get out of bed, very slowly sit up and cross your legs’
Invite participants to sit up and cross their legs
(Lotus Pose)
‘You are thankful for another beautiful day’
Invite participants to place the palms together in a prayer position.
(Continuation of Lotus Pose)
‘You stand up and stretch’
Invite participants to stand up straight with their feet at hip distance apart pressed to the floor and their arms at their sides.
(Mountain Pose)
‘Time for breakfast! Reach for the cereal box on the high shelf.’
From the Mountain invite the participants to bring their arms out to the sides and raise them above their heads bringing the palms together.
(Upward Hands Pose)
‘The school bus/taxi has arrived, find a seat and sit down’
Invite participants to bring their arms to their sides, bend the knees and squat as if sitting on a chair
(Chair Pose)
‘You arrive at school and your first lesson is learning some fascinating facts about how animals move’
(Take a short break and relax your body)
‘Owls can turn their heads 270 degrees!’ Invite participants to sit upright on their heels, and twist the upper body to the left, then to the right.
(Owl Pose)
‘The wings of a butterfly move in a figure of eight motion’
Invite participants to sit on their buttocks and with a tall spine, bend their legs, placing the soles of their feet together, then slowly move their legs like the wings of a butterfly.
(Butterfly Pose)
‘Snakes defy gravity and can move up walls’
Invite participants to lie on their front, place the palms flat next to their shoulders then lift their head and shoulders off ground.
(Cobra Pose)
‘The fastest fish to cover short distances is the sailfish (109km per hour) Invite participants to lie on their front with their knees bent, lift the chest and reach their arms back towards their toes. Can they stretch to hold their feet? (Fish Pose)
‘Dogs have 18 muscles in their ear that can move in lots of directions to help them hear’ From a standing position, Invite participants to bend down and place their palms flat on the ground, stepping the feet back to create an upside-down V shape with their buttocks high in the air. Straighten the legs, relax the head and neck and look down between their legs.
(Downward Dog)
‘Cats can turn themselves the right side up in mid-air if they should fall upside-down’
Invite participants to position themselves on all-fours, rounding their backs and tucking their chins into the chest.
(Cat Pose)
‘Mice use their whiskers to sense temperature and rough/smooth edges’
Invite participants to sit on their heels, slowly bring their forehead down to rest in front of their knees the rest their arms down alongside your body.
(Mouse Pose)
END OF SESSION
June 21st
Summer Solstice
I love the cover to this resource designed by Megan Dunwell (age 12) from Greater Manchester who won a competition to design the cover for ‘Summer – A Multisensory Exploration’
Megan made this picture at home with her lovely Mum.
The design was printed onto canvas.
The stems are ribbons.
Megan chose which flower and colour she wanted to use each time from choice of 2 different options.
The leaves are Megan’s fingerprints which added a personal touch.
‘Summer – A Multisensory Exploration’ is a bumper resource and includes 101 summer themed sensory extension.
‘The colours of summer are the bright yellow sun
That lights up the room when the day has begun
The deep blue hues of the sapphire sky
Streaks like white chalk where the planes have flown by.’
Summer Task Boxes
Task boxes provide the materials and tools needed to complete a job or task.
They are easy to set up.
1. Theme your box then place the items/tools required to complete the task.
2. You have the option to add pictures in steps or written instructions.
3. Always discuss how to use any tools safely and supervise the activity.
Plant Care Task Box You will need
- Bucket
- Hand fork
- Gardening gloves
- Watering can/jug
- Small container/compost bucket
Activity
1. Place the items inside the bucket.
2. Can the sensory explorer remember to wear their gardening gloves and put them on independently?
3. Model then invite the sensory explorer to use the hand fork to dislodge weeds from a flower bed?
4. Model then invite the sensory explorer to use the watering can/jug to water plants/flowers?
5. Model then invite the sensory explorer to remove any dead leaves/flower heads from the plants and place in the compost bucket?
6. Can the person communicate a request for ‘help’ if required?
Seed Planting Task Box You will need
- Gloves
- Seeds (Nasturtiums, pick and eat salad, radish and sunflowers are fast growing)
- Potting compost
- Small pots or a seed tray
- Water & watering can
- Labels
Activity
1. Can the student remember to wear their gardening gloves and put them on independently?
2. Model then invite the sensory explorer to read the instructions on the seeds and open the packets?
3. Model then invite the sensory explorer to plant the seeds to the requires depth then cover with soil?
4. Model then invite the sensory explorer to water the pots/seed tray?
5. Model then invite the sensory explorer to label their pots/tray?
4. Can the person communicate a request for ‘help’ if required?
Bedding Plant Task Box You will need
- Gloves
- Trowel
- Tray of bedding plants (begonias, marigolds, pansies, petunia, salvia are easy to grow
- Water
- Watering can
Activity
1. Can the student remember to wear their gardening gloves and put their gloves on independently?
2. Model then invite the sensory explorer to follow the instructions on the plant label and find a suitable place to place the plants (sunlight and soil) and take into consideration the spacing, how tall and wide the plants will grow?
3. Model then invite the sensory explorer to use the trowel to dig a hole?
4. Model then invite the sensory explorer to remove the plant from the tray and place into the hole?
5.Model then invite the sensory explorer to fill the watering can with water and water the plant?
6. Can the student communicate a request for ‘help’ if required?
Sparrows Class Sensory Sun
The Sparrows Sensory Sun Activity
Sparrows Class at Hebden Green School in Winsford, Cheshire, had great fun creating their Sensory Sun.
Sparrows Class Teacher Vicky-Ormerod Jordan tells us about the activity and explains how to re-create it.
‘The children participated in several multi-sensory activities linked to the sun, which all combined to make their final art piece. The process took a number of sessions which spanned across one full week.’
To re-create the activities
You will need
- Large yellow or orange scrunchy elastic band or ribbons
- Oranges and lemons
- Yellow flowers or leaves
- Torch
- Yellow/orange/white paint
- Paper
Activity 1: The Stretchy Band
‘The children held onto a giant yellow stretchy band and participated in songs linked to the sun and summer. Our favourite song was ‘The Sun has Got His Hat On’ but we also enjoy singing ‘You are my Sunshine’ and ‘Sunshine in my Heart.’ The children lifted the band up, down and side to side and rocked forward and back to the music, focusing on their vestibular sense. We also played Vivaldi’s ‘Summer’ from The Four Seasons and moved rhythmically to the music, pinging the band like a violin. We then placed the stretchy band into a circular shape to be the centre of our sun.’
Vicky and Sparrows Students
Activity 2 Sunlight Superstars
‘We explored how the sun provides light so living things survive by shining a torch on various parts of our bodies.
We shined the torch on our hands, arms, legs and chin, (being careful not to shine it in our eyes). The children used photos/symbols of body parts to choose where they would like the torch to shine next.
Activity 3: Let’s get Messy- The Sun’s Rays
‘To make the sun’s rays, the class chose to use either their hands or their feet. We mixed white and yellow together to make different shades of yellow and also had orange paint available. The children chose their preferred paint colour and made splats with their hands, feet or both! Some pupils preferred to cut out their handprint and use a paintbrush instead, developing fine motor skills. After letting the paint dry, we arranged the hand and footprints to look like rays of sunshine coming out from the centre of our sun.’
Sparrows Class Hebden Green School
Activity 4: Oranges and Lemons
‘We sang the rhyme ‘Oranges and Lemons’ and then supported the children to use their senses, focusing on touch, smell and taste. The children rolled the oranges and lemons, and we touched their bumpy, cold skin. We then chopped the oranges and lemons and spent time exploring the smell, touch and taste. The fruit was then placed into the centre of our sun, making a circle. We even added yellow tennis balls as a nod to Wimbledon!’
Thank you to Class Teacher Vicky Ormerod-Jordan and to her wonderful team: Nicky, Ann & Alice and last, but definitely not least, the stars of the show, the students of Sparrows Class!
4th July
