Summer holidays are about to come to an end, routine returns to our days, and a new school year begins.
During this last week of vacation, on the Holiday Tips post, we will cover the olfactory and gustatory sensory systems, which are closely related to each other.
The olfactory system is responsible for processing smell, and it plays a key role in daily life. It allows us to enjoy food and even bring back powerful memories and emotions, but it is also crucial for survival because it allows us to detect spoiled food, smoke, toxic substances, etc.
In the case of the gustatory system, which is responsible for the sense of taste, it lets us enjoy the flavours of food and drinks. Together with our sense of smell, it makes eating more enjoyable and helps us stay safe by spotting healthy or potentially harmful foods.
Here are some activities that can be done at home to activate both sensory systems.
What am I smelling?
Smelling different smells without seeing what they are. You can fill small containers with different scents, such as coffee beans, spices like cinnamon or thyme, herbs like rosemary or lavender, or fruit peels. Kids need to identify and match the smells by being mindful of their smells.
Guess what this tastes like?
Similar to the previous game but tasting different flavours. You can prepare different plates with different kinds of food, textures and flavours. Blindfolded participants need to guess what they are testing and what kind of flavour it is.
Time to cook!
Invite your kids to join fun cooking activities where they can smell and play, taste and play with different ingredients. For example, making a pizza or making recipes for the summer time, like homemade ice creams.
These are the games suggested to activate these senses.
Another idea is that the same game can combine both smell and taste!
Thank you for reading…
From ASI-Wise, we hope you had a great summer time, being playful and mindful by being aware of all your sensory systems 🙂