Sensing the World Around Us

Sensing the World Around Us

Science Process Skills

Observing

Comparing and measuring

Categorizing

Materials (per group)

Yourself

Mirror

Pen flashlight or regular flashlight with a cone of paper attached

Doing the Activity

Find a partner to help you with this activity.

Put your finger over your closed eye lid. Turn your eye from corner to corner. He lump you feel is your cornea.

Place your finger about 6 inches from your eyes. Have your partner watch your eye. Bring your finger closer slowly, keeping the finger in focus. Can you feel the strain on your eye. What did your partner observe. The lens in your eye focuses by becoming fatter or thinner. You should be able to feel the changes. Can your partner see them?

Stay in a dark place for a few minutes. Then gently shine a light into your eye. Have your partner watch your eye to see what happens.

Your eye has a blind spot where the optic nerve and the retina connect. Try the following experiment to find your blind spot.

First cover your left eye.
Look at the cross below with your right eye.
Slowly bring the page closer to your eye.

+ .

Use a penlight or make a cone to turn a regular flashlight into one that has a narrow beam. To make a cone-cut out a paper circle. Fold the circle into a cone. Tape the big end of the cone onto the flashlight. The small pointed end will be put up to the outside of the ear.

First look into your partners ear without using a light. Gently pull upward on the lobe to straighten out their ear canal. The inside of the canal will look pink and damp. The eardrum will look shiny and pearl gray in color. Be patient sometimes it is hard to see the eardrum. You might need to find another partner that has a straighter ear canal.

Gently place the cone of the flashlight up to the ear. Once again try looking for the eardrum.

Trade with your partner and let them try the activities.

Reflecting

What type of things did you observe when looking at the eye and the ear?

List the parts of the eye that you found. List the parts of the ear that you found.

What other things would you like to find out about how your eyes and ears work?

How will knowing about the parts of your eye and your ear help you to learn how to keep them healthy?

Applying

Find out more information about your sense of touch, taste and smell.

Find out more about how your eyes work by doing some optical illusion activities.

Dissect an eye. Ask the butcher at your grocery store for a cow or pig eye. The following web site can help you with your dissection: http://www.exploratorium.edu/learning_studio/cow_eye/index.html

What's Happening

We are made aware of the world around us by means of our senses. For many centuries, man believed that human beings had only five senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. Modern scientists have added to the list the senses of pressure, heat, cold, and pain.

More Challenges

Find out more information about peripheral vision. Design an experiment to show others how it works.

Use computer software such as "The Magic School Bus Explore the Human Body" or My Amazing Human Body" to find out more about the senses.

Visit the following web sites to find out more about the senses:

Dissect a brain. Ask the butcher at the store to give you a cow brain. See if you can locate the different parts of the brain.
http://academic.uofs.edu/department/psych/sheep/

Make a model of the brain using play dough.

Visit the following web site to learn more about the brain
http://weber.u.washington.edu/~chudler/neurok.html
http://library.advanced.org/10348/
www.innerbody.com

Activity Source

Allison, Linda. Blood and Guts. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company, 1976.

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY
University Extension

Site contact
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Contact information: Sarah McArdell mcard002@umn.edu
Updated: January, 2000

NNST CYFERNet

	Sensing the World Around Us
	Science Process Skills Observing Comparing and measuring Categorizing
	Materials (per group) Yourself Mirror Pen flashlight or regular flashlight with a cone of paper attached
	Doing the Activity Find a partner to help you with this activity. Put your finger over your closed eye lid. Turn your eye from corner to corner. He lump you feel is your cornea. Place your finger about 6 inches from your eyes. Have your partner watch your eye. Bring your finger closer slowly, keeping the finger in focus. Can you feel the strain on your eye. What did your partner observe. The lens in your eye focuses by becoming fatter or thinner. You should be able to feel the changes. Can your partner see them? Stay in a dark place for a few minutes. Then gently shine a light into your eye. Have your partner watch your eye to see what happens. Your eye has a blind spot where the optic nerve and the retina connect. Try the following experiment to find your blind spot. First cover your left eye. Look at the cross below with your right eye. Slowly bring the page closer to your eye. + . Use a penlight or make a cone to turn a regular flashlight into one that has a narrow beam. To make a cone-cut out a paper circle. Fold the circle into a cone. Tape the big end of the cone onto the flashlight. The small pointed end will be put up to the outside of the ear. First look into your partners ear without using a light. Gently pull upward on the lobe to straighten out their ear canal. The inside of the canal will look pink and damp. The eardrum will look shiny and pearl gray in color. Be patient sometimes it is hard to see the eardrum. You might need to find another partner that has a straighter ear canal. Gently place the cone of the flashlight up to the ear. Once again try looking for the eardrum. Trade with your partner and let them try the activities.
	Reflecting What type of things did you observe when looking at the eye and the ear? List the parts of the eye that you found. List the parts of the ear that you found. What other things would you like to find out about how your eyes and ears work? How will knowing about the parts of your eye and your ear help you to learn how to keep them healthy?
	Applying Find out more information about your sense of touch, taste and smell. Find out more about how your eyes work by doing some optical illusion activities. Dissect an eye. Ask the butcher at your grocery store for a cow or pig eye. The following web site can help you with your dissection: http://www.exploratorium.edu/learning_studio/cow_eye/index.html
	What's Happening We are made aware of the world around us by means of our senses. For many centuries, man believed that human beings had only five senses: sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. Modern scientists have added to the list the senses of pressure, heat, cold, and pain.
	More Challenges Find out more information about peripheral vision. Design an experiment to show others how it works. Use computer software such as "The Magic School Bus Explore the Human Body" or My Amazing Human Body" to find out more about the senses. Visit the following web sites to find out more about the senses: Dissect a brain. Ask the butcher at the store to give you a cow brain. See if you can locate the different parts of the brain. http://academic.uofs.edu/department/psych/sheep/ Make a model of the brain using play dough. Visit the following web site to learn more about the brain http://weber.u.washington.edu/~chudler/neurok.html http://library.advanced.org/10348/ www.innerbody.com
	Activity Source Allison, Linda. Blood and Guts. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company, 1976.