Recognizing and Remembering (Science/Social Studies Connection)
| Objective: | to
recognize that the brain helps a person to recognize and
remember
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| Materials: | cloth or paper bag with
familiar objects
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| Procedures:
Student Information: |
1. Put a group of
different objects in a bag. These should be items that are familiar to
the students.
2. Have students volunteer to identify the items using only the sense of touch. 3. Explain to the students that the senses send signals to the brain for interpretation and storage. 4. Hold up one of the objects. Ask a student to identify the object. 5. Lead the discussion
of how the sense of sight sends a message to the brain. Further discuss
that information obtained previously is stored in the brain helps a person
to recognize and recall the name for the object being identified.
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| Assessment: | Each student should use two different sense organs to name two separate objects and explain how the sense organs rely on the brain for aid in recognition. |
Brain Control (Science/Social Studies Connection)
| Objective: | to state that different
activities are controlled by different parts of the brain.
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| Materials:
Student Information: |
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| Procedures: | 1. Display the large
"cutout" representation of the brain.
2. Provide students with small cards. Have each student write the name of a pleasurable activity. 3. Deposit cards in a container. 4. Let students take
turns drawing a card and attaching to the correct circle on the brain "cutout."
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| Assessment: | Remove the brain "cutout" from view of students. Provide students with a list of the six areas. Each student should individually name one activity for each category. |
Your Strong Sense of Smell (Science/Social Studies Connection)
| Objectives: |
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| Student Information: | Humans are able to recognize
smells because of receptor cells located at the back of the nose. As the
air passes by the receptors, they send messages to the brain to help identify
the smell. Scientists think that we can identify about 3,000 smells.
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| Materials: |
(Some suggestions are lemon, peanut butter, vinegar, peppermint, chocolate, baby powder, cheese, and alcohol.)
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| Procedures:
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1. Place a small amount
of each substance in a separate container. Number each of the containers
and keep a list of the substance and the number of its container.
2. Place each container at separate stations throughout the room. 3. Divide the class into pairs. Provide each pair of students with a recording sheet for their answers. 4. Have one of the partners wear a blindfold. The other partner acts as the "helper" and leads the blindfolded "detective" to a smell station. The "helper" uncovers the container and allows the "detective" to smell. The "detective" then attempts to identify the substance by smell only. The "helpers" record the "detective's" guess and whether it was hard or easy for the "detective" to identify. When a pair of students reaches the halfway point in the investigation, have them switch roles. 5. When the activity is completed,
check the lists with the students and ask for their responses.
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| Assessment: | Students respond orally
to the following questions.
How might a cold interfere with your ability to recognize smells? |
Smell Is Stronger than Taste (Science/Language Arts Connection)
| Objective: | to recognize that some senses
which are controlled by the brain are stronger than others
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| Materials: |
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| Procedures:
Student Information: |
1. Blindfold a student.
2. Have the student smell one flavor of the Jello while tasting another flavor. Let the student guess which flavor is being tasted. Most often students will
name the flavor smelled.
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| Assessment: | Students will recognize that some senses are more powerful than others. They will make a journal entry explaining the procedure from the activity and the results. |
Conscious vs. Unconscious (Science/Social Studies/Language Arts/Art)
| Objectives: |
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| Student Information: | Establish the idea that
as babies we were able to do certain things without being taught. As we
grown older, we learn many behaviors. Discuss actions that are automatic
and those that are learned or conscious.
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| Materials: |
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| Procedures:
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1. Have students work
together to make a set of flashcards for conscious and unconscious activities.
On one side of the card, have students draw a picture of the activity and
write a complete sentence telling about the activity. The other side of
the card should remain blank.
2. Divide the class
in teams of four or five students. A student from each team chooses a card
and acts out the activity while other members in the group try to guess
the activity.
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| Assessment: | The students will read the
following selection and identify the conscious and unconscious activities.
Directions for students - Underline the conscious activities with a red crayon. Underline the unconscious activities with a blue crayon. Dan walked through the house. He picked up some books that were on the living room floor and replaced them on the bookshelves. He opened the curtains and as the bright sun shone through the window, he blinked his eyes. He turned and walked into the kitchen. Dan immediately began to sneeze. His eyes began to water. He knew that mother must be making spaghetti for dinner. He quickly left the room. |
The Brain: Keeping You Safe
(Science/Health and Safety/Social Studies/Language Arts/Art Connection)| Objective: | to recognize ways in which
our brain helps to keep us safe
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| Student Information: | Students have identified
conscious and unconscious activities in previous lessons. Using this knowledge,
students will draw from their own past experiences to recognize ways in
which the brain has helped keep them safe.
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| Procedures: | 1. Instruct students
to think of a situation in their past where they were in danger. This could
include an accident or a "near accident."
2. Using the writing
process, students will develop a finished product to tell about this incident.
This should be in booklet form and include illustrations.
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| Assessment: | The finished product will
be assessed on the following points.
addresses the role of others or surrounding circumstances in the event |
Your Problem-Solving Brain (Science/Social Studies/Language Arts)
| Objective: | to recognize that the brain
enables us to think creatively and solve problems
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| Student Information: | Students need to be encouraged
to think creatively and solve problems relevant to situations that they
encounter. They need to recognize the fact that we operate from a "knowledge
base" and that no one person has all of the answers to problems that arise.
Provide examples of how adults must solve problems creatively based on
their past experiences. Allow children to brainstorm and share personal
experiences where they have been forced to solve problems creatively. Promote
discussion of other possible solutions and how choices effected the end
result.
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| Procedures: | Each student identifies
a scenario which calls for a creative solution. Options for their choices
may come from
Individual groups present
their problems to the class.
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| Assessment: | Students are presented with
the following situation or one selected by the teacher. They must independently
solve the problem using the considerations addressed in the activity.
Mrs. Smith's second grade class is planning a party to celebrate the completion of their unit on the human body. Students must decide on the theme for the party. One group suggested a "Tasting Party" since the sense of taste was addressed in the unit. Another group wants to have use "Dem Bones" as the theme. A third group wants to focus on "Healthy Eating." Come up with a creative solution to this conflict. Remember that you need to something to make everyone happy. Assess on the following :
organizes ideas for effective communication |
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Questions/Comments
