Sound Walk: Relaxing and Learning Experience for Kids
A soundwalk is a type of walk that focuses mainly on the environment. The most important purpose of a sound walk is to motivate the walkers to listen discriminatively. They can critically judge the sound heard and their contribution to the balance or imbalance of the sonic environment.
Invention of Sound Walking
Hildegard Westerkamp, a Canadian composer, sound ecologist, and radio artist, introduced the concept of sound walking. He developed this while working on the world soundscape project with fellow members in the 1970s.
How to Conduct a Soundwalk?
Plan a route using a map or smartphone GPS
Connect with the environment
You can take a companion (your child or spouse) with you for better walking
Close the eyes
Let the sound go deep into your thoughts so that it leaves an impact
Now Reflect, remember and re-do the things.
A sound walk can be done in many ways. You can use headphones and play music on them. You also can take the headphone off and listen to the surroundings. It can be experienced through an actual walk in nature. It can also be a standalone piece in the comfort of your living room. The primary purpose is to pay attention and listen to the environment. The environment can be different.
For better results, follow the below points. This method is mainly applied among young children who are students. Young people will benefit from a sound walk, with an instructor guiding them during the process. Follow the steps yourself or suggest your pupils follow (if you are a guide to them).
Cover ears with hands for 20 seconds and then remove hands. This action stimulates the sense of hearing.
Pay attention to the nearest audible sound and then try to hear the farthest sound possible.
Try to hear sounds with alternative ears. Put hands on the other. Repeat the steps in reverse order.
Try to listen to sounds behind you besides the sound of walking.
Note if there is a pattern of sounds that occurs periodically.
Observe if there is a difference in sound between when you listen to it with closed eyes and when you listen while keeping the eyes open.
Concentrate more on hearing than on watching.
You can use a sound finder and observe if it affects their hearing.
Stay in the place or around it that you choose for a sound walk experience.
There are mainly 3 forms of sounds that come our way (geophony, biophony, anthrophony). Find out which type of sound is most prominent and which one is the rarest.
Lastly, compare the soundscapes of different sites you visit.
Child on Sound Walk
Benefits of Sound Walk
On a sound walk, children try to focus on the sounds they hear around them. When they do that, they subconsciously improve the nature of paying attention. They get to realise how much they notice with attentive ears. A sound walk makes one more intuitive in the process. This will develop the ability to be mindful. Mindfulness further helps in dealing with stress and doing your staff like study, work, and other activities better.
You can make the sound walk game interesting for young children. Encourage them to copy the noises they hear. Following in the right footsteps is another important thing. The way you also walk matters in the time sound process. Older children can make a sound map after the walk with a note of where they walked and what they heard along the way.
Going for a walk is great for both children and elders. Including this healthy habit in your routine is no less than therapy. Besides that, a sound walk game is a key to all-way development for growing children. Babies who get out of the home and spend time in the lap of nature are likely to be more adaptable and social. This way, they improve many skills regarding activities related to the five organs. In addition, they use all their senses and connect more with the natural elements.
What is the Best Time for a Sound Walk and Why?
Well, how to decide that its time for a sound walk! People mostly like to walk in the morning. It’s the most beneficial time for your mind-body soul as well. Avoid pretty noisy areas. Rather choose less crowded places.
If you take your children for a sound walk, make sure the path is safe for their walking. A walk can be conducted at any time, but the best is usually in the morning when the energy is at its peak or in the evening after the work is over for the day.
People on Sound Walk
More About Walking Sound and Sound Walking
People at a global level have tried sound Walking. Many have witnessed sound improvement in themselves and their children following sound therapy. Visual artists and documentary project makers have used the sound walk as an artistic medium. The sound walk is a part of filming projects with fewer dialogues.
The sound walk makes more sense with a developed, intuitive mind. It is when you listen to the little things to figure out the bigger picture. Schafer, the inventor of the idea of the Sound walk, was particularly interested in the implications of the changes in soundscapes in industrial society’s children. It further signifies children’s relationship with the world through sound. Schafer was involved in ear cleaning, and thus he saw that sound walking is an integral part of the process. It re-engages our aural senses to find our place in the world.
Conclusion
After the above discussion, we can conclude that finding time for a sound walk is worthwhile. A sound walk can be done in multiple ways. Every time it comes with numerous benefits. Encourage your child (or yourself) to have the highest benefits of a systematic sound walk. Share the blog with someone you want to go for a sound walk together.
