Lesson Introduction
Students in grades 4-6 often do a study of Canada. In Grades 4 and 5 for example, students explore the different regions of Canada in Social Studies. They often do an in-depth study of the landforms, physical characteristics of different regions of Canada, as well as its varied climate and abundance in natural resources. So, what does Canada feel like? What does it taste like? What does it look like? How do our senses let us experience Canada as a nation? By using sensory imagery as a literary device, students are able to develop deeper, multisensory understandings to what they have been working on. The results are actually quite stunning and make excellent visual displays if connected to artwork.
Learning Objectives
In this lesson, students will have opportunities to:
- Identify characteristics that are unique to a particular region in Canada (ie. trees, climate, species, landmarks, natural landforms, cities, bodies of water).
- Brainstorm sensory images and key characteristics that reflect a particular region or province of Canada.
- Identify vibrant adjectives that are representative of the region / province.
- Write descriptions that use concrete sensory details to create impressions that last in one's mind.
- Use poetic devices, such as, alliteration or similes, within imagery as an extension acitivity.
- Write a poem collaboratively, so that students share and exchange ideas together.
Materials and Resources
To teach this lesson, you will need:
- graphic organizer: 5 senses chart
- graphic organizer: Regions of Canada research
- iPads for online thesaurus / a set of thesauri students can use