The soundscape as an environmental education tool

Abstract

The soundscape comprises the set of sounds that characterize an environment, enabling the identification of its natural and cultural elements. This experience report presents soundscape listening as an environmental education tool aimed at fostering a closer connection between people and nature. The activity was conducted at Jonas Domingues Municipal Park, in Votorantim, São Paulo, Brazil, using an interactive sign with QR codes that provided recordings of the park's natural sounds and information about the species that vocalize in the area. To understand the perceptions evoked by the experience, questionnaires were administered to nine children, aged 7 to 10 years, who were members of a Scout group. The results showed that listening to the soundscape evoked feelings of calm and tranquility, triggered memories of people and places, and encouraged an appreciation of silence as a condition for a deeper connection with nature. The experience demonstrated that attentive listening is an educational strategy capable of integrating sensory, affective, and cognitive dimensions into the learning process.