My Amazing Eyes: Exploring the Sense of Sight
Materials Needed
- A small mirror
- Five to eight safe household objects with different colors, shapes, and sizes
- Colored paper or crayons
- Paper and washable crayons or markers
- A flashlight, used with adult supervision
- A small basket or bag
- Optional: a picture book about eyes or the five senses
Learning Objectives
By the end of the lesson, the child will be able to:
- Say that eyes help us see.
- Name at least three things they can see, such as colors, shapes, or people.
- Sort or match objects by one visible feature, such as color, size, or shape.
- Tell one way to care for their eyes.
Success Criteria
I can:
- Point to my eyes and say, “I see with my eyes.”
- Describe something I see using a color, shape, or size word.
- Match or sort objects by what they look like.
- Share one safe eye-care rule.
Introduction: What Can Your Eyes Do? (5 minutes)
Hook
Place the basket of objects nearby. Ask:
- “How do you know what is in this basket?”
- “What helps you see your toys, books, and family?”
Invite the child to look at their eyes in the mirror.
Say: “These are your eyes. Eyes help us see. Today we will be eye explorers. We will look for colors, shapes, and sizes.”
Child-Friendly Vocabulary
- Sight: Using our eyes to see.
- Color: What something looks like, such as red, blue, or yellow.
- Shape: What something looks like, such as a circle or square.
- Size: How big or small something is.
Body: Explore and Practice
1. I Do: Teacher or Adult Demonstration (5 minutes)
Hold up one object at a time and describe what you see.
Model: “I see a red ball. It is round. It is small.”
Point to your eyes and say:
“I use my eyes to see the red ball.”
Demonstrate looking at an object carefully. Show how you can notice:
- Its color
- Its shape
- Its size
- Its details, such as stripes, dots, or buttons
Quick Check: Hold up an object and ask, “What do I use to see this?” Encourage the child to answer, “My eyes.”
2. We Do: Eye Detective Hunt (8–10 minutes)
Walk around the home together and look for objects. Give the child time to find each item.
Say:
- “Find something blue.”
- “Find something round.”
- “Find something bigger than your hand.”
- “Find something with stripes or dots.”
After each discovery, ask:
- “What did you find?”
- “What color is it?”
- “What shape is it?”
- “Is it big or small?”
Think-and-Talk Prompt: “What would be harder to do if we could not see?” Accept simple answers such as “find my toys,” “read a book,” or “see my food.”
3. We Do: Sort What We See (8 minutes)
Place the household objects on the floor or table.
- Choose one way to sort the objects: by color, shape, or size.
- Sort two or three objects together as a model.
- Invite the child to place the remaining objects in groups.
- Ask the child to explain the groups using simple words.
Example: “These objects go together because they are blue. These objects go together because they are round.”
Choice: Let the child choose whether to sort by color, shape, or size.
4. You Do: Draw What You See (10 minutes)
Invite the child to choose one object to draw.
Give these clear steps:
- Look closely at the object.
- Choose a crayon or marker that matches its color.
- Draw the object’s shape.
- Add one detail, such as a line, dot, stripe, or button.
- Tell an adult about the picture.
Ask:
- “What did you draw?”
- “What color did you use?”
- “What shape do you see?”
Respond with specific feedback: “You looked carefully and added the button you saw.”
5. Optional Movement Game: “Show Me With Your Eyes” (5 minutes)
Call out a visual clue. The child moves to or points to something that matches.
- “Touch something yellow.”
- “Point to something tall.”
- “Find something shaped like a circle.”
- “Show me something that has two colors.”
For a classroom, children may work in pairs. For homeschool, the adult may play along and take turns finding objects.
Eye Safety Mini-Lesson (3 minutes)
Ask, “How can we take care of our eyes?” Guide the child toward these rules:
- “Do not poke or rub your eyes with dirty hands.”
- “Keep sharp objects away from your eyes.”
- “Ask an adult before using a flashlight.”
- “Wear sunglasses outside when an adult says they are needed.”
If using a flashlight, shine it on the wall or floor only. Never shine it into anyone’s eyes.
Assessment
Formative Assessment During the Lesson
- Ask, “What do we use to see?”
- Ask the child to describe one object using a color, shape, or size word.
- Observe whether the child can match or sort objects by a visible feature.
- Listen for one eye-care rule during the safety discussion.
Summative Assessment: Eye Explorer Challenge (5 minutes)
Invite the child to complete these four challenges:
- Point to their eyes and say what eyes do.
- Find one object and describe its color.
- Find another object and describe its shape or size.
- Tell one way to keep eyes safe.
Successful completion: The child completes at least three of the four challenges with simple words, gestures, or pointing.
Differentiation and Adaptations
For a Child Who Needs More Support
- Offer only two objects at a time.
- Use choices: “Is it red or blue?”
- Use gestures and point to your eyes while speaking.
- Let the child answer by pointing, matching, or drawing instead of speaking.
- Practice one feature at a time, such as color before shape.
For a Child Ready for More Challenge
- Ask the child to describe an object using two or three features.
- Invite the child to sort objects in two different ways.
- Ask, “What is the same about these objects? What is different?”
- Have the child lead an adult on an eye detective hunt.
- Invite the child to make a simple drawing of an eye and label it with adult help.
Flexible Learning Options
- Digital: Use a virtual color or shape hunt with objects visible on screen.
- Outdoor: Look for leaves, flowers, clouds, signs, and safe shapes outside.
- Group setting: Have children take turns describing an object without naming it while others guess.
- Low-mess option: Replace drawing with pointing, matching, or taking turns placing objects into groups.
Conclusion: Tell What We Learned (5 minutes)
Invite the child to finish these sentences:
- “I see with my _____.”
- “I can see colors, shapes, and _____.”
- “One thing I saw today was _____.”
- “I can keep my eyes safe by _____.”
Recap: “Today we learned that our eyes help us see. We used our eyes to notice colors, shapes, sizes, and details. We also learned to keep our eyes safe.”
Optional Closing Chant
“Eyes open wide, look left and right.
Colors and shapes are fun to find!
We care for our eyes each day,
So we can see and learn and play!”
Optional Follow-Up Activity
During the day, invite the child to keep an “I Spy” journal. The child may draw or dictate one thing they see each day and describe its color, shape, or size.