Sense Explorers Cards
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 1: Core Senses (1 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These high-recognition shapes represent our core senses! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 2: Touch & Sight (2 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These concrete images represent physical realities! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 3: Hearing (3 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These concrete images represent physical realities! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 4: Smell (4 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These concrete images represent physical realities! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 5: Taste (5 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These concrete images represent physical realities! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
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SENSE EXPLORERS HEXAGONAL THINKING CARDS
Set 6: Touch (6 of 6)
Cut along the dashed grey lines. These concrete images represent physical realities! Sense Explorers • Science Pre-K to G1
Sense Explorers Teacher Guide
SENSE EXPLORERS
Step-by-Step Teacher Guide & Lesson Plan
Pre-K - Grade 1
Science & Language Arts
Duration 35 - 45 Minutes
Group Size 3 - 4 Students
NGSS Alignment K-LS1-1 / 1-LS1-1
Learning Objectives
- Identify the 5 primary organs & functions of human senses.
- Connect objects in the environment to multiple sensory inputs.
- Collaboratively discuss and justify connections using oral language.
Why Image-Only?
Removing words lowers the barrier for pre-readers and English learners. It shifts student energy away from decoding text and directly into high-level oral reasoning, spatial categorization, and peer debate.
Materials & Classroom Prep
Print 1 copy of the Sense Explorers Cards per small group. Cut along dashed lines to create 24 individual hexagons. Laminating cards is highly recommended for repeated use with early learners. Provide a large sheet of butcher paper or a shared table space for each group.
Instructional Pacing Guide
1
Engage: Sensory Warm-Up
10 Mins
Gather students in a circle. Ask: "If you closed your eyes, how would you know if someone brought a warm pizza into the room?" Accept answers like smelling it, hearing the box open, or touching the heat. Introduce the concept that our bodies have five magical "exploring tools" (senses) that work together to teach us about our environment.
2
Explore: Finding the Core Senses
10 Mins
Divide the class into small teams of 3 to 4. Hand out the cards. Have teams work together to locate the 5 Core Sense Cards (Eye, Ear, Nose, Cookie/Mouth, Hand) and place them in a central row or ring. Prompt them to point to their own eye, ear, nose, tongue, and hand as they group them.
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Explore: Constructing the Web
15 Mins
Explain the rule of Hexagonal Thinking: "To place a card next to another card, the edges must touch, and you must explain to your team how they are connected." Model one connection: place the Sun card next to the Eye (we see light) and the Hand (we feel warmth). Monitor groups and encourage oral explanations.
Sense Explorers • Teacher Guide Page 1 of 2
Sense Explorers • Facilitation Guide Instructional Tools (2 of 2)
Sensory Questioning Framework
👁️ SIGHT What shapes or colors do you see? How does light help us see this?
👂 HEARING Is it loud or quiet? Does it make a high sound or a low rumble?
👃 SMELL Is the scent sweet, stinky, or fresh? When does this smell waft?
👅 TASTE Is it sour, sweet, salty, or spicy? Is it a snack or a fruit?
✋ TOUCH Is it soft, rough, prickly, or fluffy? Is it freezing cold or warm?
Multi-Sensory Connection Challenges (Advanced Prompting)
Encourage deeper inquiry by asking students to justify these overlapping combinations:
🍦 Ice Cream Cone (Taste + Touch) "We taste the sweet vanilla, but we also feel how freezing cold it is on our hands and tongue!"
🔥 Campfire (Sight + Touch) "We can see the bright orange flames glowing, and we feel the cozy warmth on our skin."
🍕 Pizza (Taste + Smell + Touch) "We smell the delicious cheese baking, taste the savory sauce, and feel the warm, chewy crust."
🔔 Ringing Bell (Hearing + Touch) "We hear the loud 'cling-clang' sound, but if we touch the metal bell, we can feel it vibrating!"
Formative Observation Checklist
Clip this page to a clipboard as you walk around the room to monitor and record student interactions during the hexagonal thinking activity.
| Student Name | Senses ID'd | Linked Cards | Shared Reasoning | Observation Notes |
|---|
| ________________________ | | | | |
| ________________________ | | | | |
| ________________________ | | | | |
| ________________________ | | | | |
| ________________________ | | | | |
Sense Explorers • Teacher Guide Page 2 of 2
