The Nervous System

5th Graders explored the Nervous System today!

Neurons are specialized cells that use electricity to send messages to and from the brain.

Neuron by Andrew

Neurons transmit messages to each other using chemicals and electricity.  There are sensors (nerves) in you hands, feet, mouth, ears, eyes and nose that send your body messages from your surroundings.  Your brain interprets these messages to help you react (by sending messages from your brain through your spinal chord (bundles of neurons) to your muscles.)

Check out this video by Schoolhouse Rock for a broad overview of the nervous system.

Today we used our sense of touch to trick our nervous system.  After we put one finger in hot water and one finger in cold water, we put both in room temperature water.  The water felt cold to one finger and warm to the other!

One finger in hot water, one in cold.

The room temperature felt hot to the cold finger and cold to the hot finger!

Then, I played a trick on students' senses.  They tasted 4 different liquids each with just a hint of flavor and then had to guess what each flavor was.

After tasting each, most guessed cherry for red, lime for green, lemon for yellow, grape for purple. 

Turns out they were all the same flavor, berry!  Sensory input from our eyes can be interpreted incorrectly in our brain because we usually associate different flavors with certain colors.

You use different parts of your brain for different activities.  Many of us have a dominant side (left or right brained.)  Your left side is responsible for logical thinking and reasoning.  Your right side is responsible for creativity.   Which way does the cat move, clockwise or counter clockwise.

 If the cat moves clockwise you are more right brained and if you see the cat turning counter clockwise you are more left brained.  Some can even switch directions!