Imaginative students need imaginative teachers. An important step in developing this habitude in our students is to embrace our own imaginative potential; allowing ourselves to be creative.
Imagination is the ability of the mind to build mental images of scenes, objects or events that are not present or have happened in the past. It involves all the five senses and full emotion. One can imagine a sound, taste, smell, a physical sensation or a feeling or emotion. For some people it is easier to see mental pictures, others find it easier to imagine a feeling, and some are more comfortable imagining the sensation of one of the five senses.
“Imagine the Music” is a powerful exercise of the imagination, giving students practice using their imagination in focused and controlled ways. This exercise is intended to heighten student’s power of visualization by engaging the senses.
Select two different kinds of music or songs from different genres (rock, country, jazz, classical, etc.) to play to the class. Explain to students the purpose of the exercise will be to practice and refine their ability to visualize by using the strength and power of their senses.
As the music is played, use a few of the following questions to help guide the reflection and discussion:
- If you were to sculpt the song, what materials would you use?
- How does this song smell?
- What shape would it make?
- If you could take a bite of this song, what would it taste like?
- What color is the song?
- If the song were an animal, what would it be?
You can do this with other devices and questions (e.g., What Does That Color Sound Like? or How Does that Sound Smell?)
So…what does this blog post taste like? And what color is your reply?
Photo on Flickr by photonquantique
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