Parts of the Brain and its Functions

Day Three and Four: The Parts of the Brain

Objectives:

	Students will learn general information about the basic parts of the brain.
	Students will gain an understanding of the size and consistency of a human brain.

Illinois Learning Standards:

	12.A3a Compare and contrast how different forms and structures reflect different functions.
	23.A.3 Explain how body systems interact with each other.

Materials:

	Website Neuroscience for Kids- Explore the Nervous System, http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/introb.html
	Brain Awareness Week
	Brain Function Worksheet

Procedures:

Day Three

A fun activity to start this lesson would be to use the following website to show different animal brains: http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/compare2.html .  Students are to discuss/guess/predict which brain belongs to which animal. They will see various sizes and shapes of brains.

The Brain Awareness Week section of Neuroscience for Kids has lesson plans, diagrams and a quiz you can use for general information about the parts of the brain. For this segment of the unit, do not go into great depth. That content will come later. There is a suggestion to use fists as a model of the brain, and steps to follow to explain placement of parts and the approximate size of each part. There is a model to print and color in as each part is discussed in class. The three main parts to emphasize in this lesson would be the brain stem, the cerebellum and the cerebrum. Be sure to have the students label what the function of each part. This will be discussed more in depth as the unit goes on.  The website also uses the fist model to illustrate the front, middle and back lobes of the brain and the function of each.

Day Four

	A great activity for today is creating a model brain. The Neuroscience for Kids website has an activity and recipe to produce a brain-like substance (in a zip lock bag) with potato flakes, water, sand and food coloring. Look for the link marked “Potato Head”.
	Another website: (www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/interactives) has an interactive model of the brain. The website has one general model of areas of the brain, a model for Structure of the Brain and another model designating which part is related to specific functions.

Assessment:

The Neuroscience for Kids website (Brain Awareness Week) has a ten question multiple choice quiz for this lesson.

Day Five: The Brain’s Functions

Objectives:

	Students will learn the specific functions of the brain and its corresponding brain area and part.
	Students will learn how each lobe of the brain processes and stores different types of information.

Illinois Learning Standards:

	12.A3a Compare and contrast how different forms and structures reflect different functions.
	23.A.3 Explain how body systems interact with each other.

Materials:

	Website Neuroscience for Kids- Explore the Nervous System
	http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/introb.html
	National Institute of Drug Abuse http://www.teens.drugabuse.gov/facts/facts_brain1.asp#top
	Lobes of the Brain: http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/lobe.html
	Worksheet and answer key

Procedures:

Begin with a class discussion to generate a list of what the brain does. You may want to divide the list into columns. Some designations could be added to the columns to label automatic functions, sensory functions (processing sight, touch, sound), functions related to memory, functions related to learning.

Another website has an interactive model of the brain: www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/interactives/organs/brainmap/index.shtml The website has one general model of areas of the brain, a model for Structure of the Brain and another model designating which part is related to specific functions. The area of the brain could be added to the columns previously generated. The section on brain functions goes into areas of emotions as well as learning, memory and skills.

Assessment:

If you have access to a computer lab, there is a web site that has an interactive model that labels all parts of the brain when they are highlighted by the cursor and tells what specific functions that area controls. The web location is: teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/indepth/headsup/brain_meet.htm and the area is called “Meet Your Incredible Brain”. To organize the information, the six areas of the brain are already listed on the worksheet. Students can use the website to discover where they are. Students can then investigate the areas to determine what specific skills are controlled by that area. An answer key is provided following the student worksheet.

This second website provides the needed material in article form if the links on the Scholastic Site won’t work on school computers. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1590/is_3_59/ai_95845382