This paper describes the way two university instructors encouraged students to perceive and understand the influence of their personal environment. The classes, an undergraduate course and a graduate course in education, focused on the integration of art and science disciplines as students reflected on their experience of their environment. A sample activity required students to walk around a city block no less than three times sequentially and then reflect upon the activity, construct a representation of the experience, and engage in class dialog about the experience. These experiences caused some students anxiety, but it led many to recognize their preexisting assumptions and the effects of prior experiences, as well as their differing comfort levels with various representational forms. Implications are drawn for teachers on the importance of the cultural environment that students bring into their classrooms. (Contains 13 references.) (DB)