Radel James Gacumo, on behalf of the Sensory Books project, participated in the Nordic Educational Research Association (NERA) Conference in Malmö, Sweden, from March 6th to 8th, 2024.
Gacumo joined the symposium entitled “Body-Sensory Dimensions and the Becoming of Young Readers - Critical Discussions and Novel Considerations,” along with other researchers from Linköping University, University of Gothenburg, and Mälardalen University. The symposium was spearheaded by Anna Martín-Bylund from Linköping University.
Radel presented an abstract titled “The Sensory Books Project: Olfactory Sense in Children’s Reading Process”:
Reading, understood as an embodied experience, has been little researched from the perspective of sensory learning. In particular, sensory dimensions like taste, smell, and proprioception often remain untapped. The Sensory Books project funded by the Norwegian Research Council and based at the University of Stavanger, delves into these overlooked areas, particularly highlighting the depth and richness the olfactory sense can bring to the reading process.
Our findings underscore the significance of integrating all senses, especially smell, into children's narratives. In the presentation, we will report on children's engagement with story-related smell in an interactive exhibition in the local museum and an experimental study looking into children's engagement with olfactory books. In both studies, the type of smells used and their sequencing, were important factors implicated in children's engagement. We reflect on the findings from the perspective of the transactional reader theory and propose a new model for theorizing children's engagement in multisensory reading environments.
Truly, it was a worthwhile experience to be able to share and expand discussions to further a multisensory and embodied approach to literacy for children.
