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Table of Contents

This is Senseless

express

evaluate

exhibit

engage

Middle School Module

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engage express exhibit evaluate

ABOUT THIS MODULE 3

ACADEMIC VOCABULARY 4

REQUIRED MATERIALS 6

EVENT PLANNER 11

MONDAY: SENSES IN THE WORKS 12

TUESDAY: SENSORYMANIA 30

WEDNESDAY: I’VE GOT A FEELING 47

THURSDAY: EXTRAORDINAIRY SENSES 63

FRIDAY: COMMUNITY SHARING EVENT 72

Table of Contents

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Objective

This module focuses on the human senses, both traditional and some that are lesser known. Throughout the week, topics will focus on how the senses work in the body and how they can be adapted to our appliances.

Driving Questions

How do the senses detect energy?

How can we make our senses stronger?

What if our senses became interconnected so we could smell sounds or taste colors?

What kind of sixth sense would you like to develop?

Is there a technology that acts in place of eyes/mouth to prepare the sense?

Products of the Week

SENSOR’d Appliance Design

Community Sharing Event

SENSOR’d Appliance Expo

Introduction

Our bodies are equipped to sense all kinds of energy–we can feel electric shocks in our fingertips, hear how much energy a sound wave possesses, and even smell energy in the form of food. But how might we perceive energy differently if we had no senses, a sixth sense, or recombined the senses we already have? This week we’ll work in teams to explore this year’s theme of “Energy of the Future” and create ideas for new inventions that use our senses in ways we’ve never used them before. Could you imagine a guitar that plays music that smells, or a video game you can feel? The possibilities are endless!

About This Module

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Word Definition

Auditory the sense of hearing

Balance the even distribution of weight that keeps an object upright

Brain stem the central trunk of the brain

Center of Gravity the average location of the weight of an object

Cerebellum the part of the brain at the back of the skull that coordinates and regulate muscular activity

Cerebrum the principal and most anterior part of the brain, located in the front area of the skull and consisting of two hemispheres, left and right.

Cornea the transparent layer forming the front of the eye

Energy The strength required for physical or mental activity. Or, the power generated by physical or chemical sources that provides enough light or heat to make machines work

Equilibrioception the sense of balance

Fovea a small depression in the retina of the eye where visual acuity is highest

Frontal lobe section of the brain lying immediately behind the forehead, responsible for decision making and voluntary movement

Iris a flat, colored, ring-shaped membrane behind the cornea of the eye, with an adjustable circular opening (pupil) in the center

Lens a transparent, biconvex structure in the eye that, along with the cornea, helps to refract light to be focused on the retina

Nervous system the network of nerve cells and fibers that transmits nerve impulses between parts of the body

Nociception the ability to feel pain

Occipital lobe section in the back of the brain responsible for vision

Academic Vocabulary

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Olfactory sense of smell

Oral relating to the mouth

Parietal lobe section of the brain at the top of the head, responsible for taste and touch

Propioception the sense of body positioning and the strength of movement

Pupil the opening of the iris

Retina a layer at the back of the eyeball containing cells that are sensitive to light and that trigger nerve impulses

Sensor a device that detects or measures a physical property and records it

Sensory system part of the nervous system responsible for processing sensory information

Sound vibrations that travel through the air or another medium and can be heard when they reach a person's or animal's ear.

Symmetry the quality of being made up of exactly similar parts facing each other or around an axis

Tactile perceptible by touch

Temporal lobe section of the brain lying beneath the temples, responsible for recognizing sound

Thermoception the sense by which an organism perceives temperatures

Vision being able to see

Visual relating to seeing or sight

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Note: Facilitator Resource materials and handouts are included at the end of the day

and should be printed in advance.

Facilitator

Handout: Diagram of the Lobes of the Brain

Handout: Nervous System ID Cards

Handout: Eye Anatomy card

Lost girl 5x10 - Bo laser scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZC5hqL8I7w

2012 Ford Focus self-parking tech demo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-rxJkVzUxI

Whiteboard and a marker

Scissors

Cereal bowl [ceramic]

Plastic Wrap

Five-foot long pieces of string

Rubber bands

2 Salt packets

Whistle

Bag of popped Popcorn

M&M’s

Computer connected to the Internet and speakers

Projector

Radio (optional)

24 Paper cups

An age-appropriate book

6 Scented oils

5 socks

Things to fill the sock with: Lego piece, marbles, play dough, rice,

Required Materials

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZC5hqL8I7w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-rxJkVzUxI

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paper, a broken crayon, sand, gravel/small rocks, dirt, cereal

Bag potato chips

Bag of grapes

Bar unsweetened chocolate

Bottle of lemon juice

Plastic gloves

Yarn or crepe paper

Masking Tape

Box of Push pins – 100

1 per Team

Handout: Finding Focus

Taste buds on the Tongue, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes

What is sensor technology?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v25PCV_IJCw

How does a color sensor work?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay

Completed Engineering Design handouts from the previous lesson

What is remote sensing?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBI3MIbzIBA

Sensor Diagrams and Prototypes In progress

Masking or scotch tape

Magnifying glass

Box of colored pencils

Measuring tape

Small red ball

Cereal bowl [ceramic]

Plastic Wrap

Five-foot long pieces of string

Rubber bands

2 Salt packets

2 sheets of Graph paper

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v25PCV_IJCw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBI3MIbzIBA

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Box of colored pencils

Ruler

Heat pack

Cold pack

Graph paper

Colored pencils

Poster Board

Prototype materials: wires, disposable thermometers, Bubble wrap, plain cotton T-shirts, pipe cleaners, foil, Tape, scrap material, packing peanuts, cotton balls, plastic wrap, popsicle sticks, etc.

Colored pencils

Poster Board

1 per Member

2 Handouts: Engineering Design Process

Handout: Is Theroception a true sense?

Handout: Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portraits template

Handout: Eye Observation

Glue

Colored paper

Markers

2 Magazines [1 technical;1general]

4 different colored permanent markers [black, blue, green, purple]

Lined paper

Index card

2 Pennies

Cardstock

Colored pencils

Tape

Symmetrical shape stencils

Scissors

Pencil

Small paper clip

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Blindfold

Large Swim caps

Whistle

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Note: Complete the following table early during the week to prepare for the Community Sharing event. Share the answers with the CPO for approval.

Type of Event on Friday

Event Name

Who’s Invited

Publicity to Use (Circle all that apply, use blank spaces for additional items)

Fliers Website

Invitations

Ads

Event Location

Display Area for Projects

Supplies Needed (Circle all that apply, use blank spaces for additional items)

Chairs Scissors

Tables Markers

Signs CD Player

Tape Video Equipment

Cups Napkins Refreshments (Try to select items that tie into the theme)

Task Assigned to: Due Date:





Event Planner

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Monday Warm-up Sensing Energy

Location: Learning Center (or other space with tables and art supplies)

Estimated Time: 15min

What You Need

Whiteboard and a marker (per facilitator)

How to Prepare

Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work area and pull out all materials.

Steps to Follow

1 Welcome members.

2 Ask the group to sit together in one large circle.

3 Say Each week you will participate in Creativity Catalyst, working in teams to come up with original, world-changing ideas.

4

Explain to members that there are six weeks in the program. Each week has something to do with the theme “Energy of the Future”. This week’s theme, This is Senseless, is about the senses. Throughout the week, members will explore the role of senses in their lives, and how the world might be different if their senses were used in different ways.

5 To start off, ask What does the word ‘energy’ mean to you?

6

Within the Creativity Catalyst program, we define energy in two ways: (1) The strength required for physical or mental activity. (2) Or, the power generated by physical or chemical sources that provides enough light or heat to make machines work.

Monday: Senses in the Works

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7 Share the definition of energy with the group on a whiteboard or chart paper.

8

Say Name examples of energy that you can see, feel, hear, smell, or taste. (lightning/the sun), feel (static/hot water), hear (sound of a generator/rumbling stomach), smell (burnt rubber/burning wood), taste (any food is energy/water).

9 Give members time between each sense to offer their answers.

10

After all the senses are discussed, say, this week we are going to explore the limits of our senses, using our imaginations to come up with ideas for new technology that mimics their combined functions.

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Monday Activity 1: Exaggerated Senses


Estimated Time: 30-45 min

Description: Members will create collages using images to represent how each sense organ works.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will recognize appliances that work similarly to human senses.

What You Need

Handout: Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portraits template (per member)

Glue (per member)

Scissors (per member)

Colored paper (per member)

Markers (per member)

2 Magazines [1 technical;1general] (per member)

How to Prepare


Print a copy of the Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portrait template for each member.

Identify an area to display finished portraits. You may lay them on display tables, hang them, or come up with a creative set up of your own.

Steps to Follow

1 Say Suppose you could enhance your senses to do more than is thought humanly possible. Which sense would you enhance and what would you enable it to do?

2 Allow members to discuss their ideas with a partner or in groups and then discuss as a class.

3

Say Name some tools that humans rely on to help or extend the capability of their senses. (Wear glasses, use microscopes to see microscopic objects, use telescopes to see objects that are far away, wear hearing aids, etc.)

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4

Say As we begin our exploration of the senses we are going to create individual Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portraits. Each member will make collages replacing the sense organs on the face and hands with pictures of appliances that function in a similar but more advanced way. For example, replacing the eyes with microscopes or telescopes or replacing the ears a cell phone.

5 Distribute Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portraits template to each member.

6 Place magazines, colored pencils, markers, glue, and scissors at each table for members to use.

7 Members should search the magazines for the appliance they want to use to represent each sense.

8

To individualize each humanoid portrait, allow members to draw, write on and fill the portraits with pictures from magazines of things they love to sense: their favorite smells, flavors, sights, and sounds.

9 While the members are working, set up the portrait display area identified in advance of the lesson.

10 Assign each member a display station to display their portrait.

11 Allow members to do a gallery walk to observe each other’s portraits.

12

Ask members to reflect on the appliances chosen by their peers to represent the different sense organs. Did anyone represent one of the senses in a way that seemed unusual or different? Did you see any appliances that you thought were creative or cleaver replacements for a human sense organ? What limitations do you think would exist if sense organs were replaced by some of these appliances?

13 Once the activity is complete, provide instructions regarding clean-up and store portraits for a future activity.

14 To close the activity, say, that was a great way to start our week together! For the rest of the week, we’ll explore our senses in lots of different and fun ways!

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We’ll also form “Idea Teams”—small groups that will work together on an amazing idea throughout the week and develop it through lots of brainstorming, research, and creative activities.

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Monday Activity 2: Brain Sense Relationship

Location: Learning center or multipurpose room Estimated Time: 30-45 min

Description: Members will create a swim cap diagram of the lobes of the brain.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will identify which parts of the brain are responsible for sensory functions.

What You Need

Handout: Diagram of the Lobes of the Brain ( per facilitator)


Masking or scotch tape (per team)

4 different colored permanent markers [black, blue, green, purple] (per member)

Lined paper (per member)

Pencil (per member)

Large Swim caps (per member)

Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work area and pull out all materials. .

Print a copy of the Lobes of the Brain handout and conduct an online search to locate a top view diagram of the brain.

If you would like to display a digital diagram of the brain, conduct a google search online to find a diagram that includes the lobes of the cerebrum, the cerebellum and the brain stem.

Set up the activity stations for each group. Be sure to include: 1) Swim caps 2) Markers 3) Tape

Steps to Follow

1 Have members take out a piece of paper and a pencil.

2 Tell members to position their pencils at the center of the paper as though they were going to write something.

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3 Tell members that they will have one minute to draw a picture of their brain.

4 After time is up, have members share their drawings with their neighbor.

5 As they share, draw outlines of the brain on the board or a large piece of paper. Draw the brain from the top (bird’s eye view) and the side (profile).

6 Ask Have you seen a picture of the brain before? If so, how did you know what it looks like, without seeing it? The answer is memory.

7

Say Only part of the brain is responsible for memory. The brain is made of many different parts and we are going to label them. Before we get into what each part is and what they do, we have to know what it is. What is the brain?

8 Say The brain is a major organ in the nervous system of the human body.

9 Ask What other organs do you know? If members struggle, give them clues to nudge answers toward organs like heart, lungs, etc.

10

Say The brain is the control center of all thinking, feeling, and emotional activity. It is made of a soft tissue that consists of nerves. A nerve is a bundle of fibers that sends impulses to and from the brain.

11 Ask Has anyone ever burnt themselves by touching something really hot?

12

Say When you touched that hot object, nerves sent a message to the brain, the brain interpreted that message as ‘this item is hot and is burning me’. The brain then sent a message to the hand and told it to put the object down. This all happens in about a second.

13 Say Now let’s connect how the brain looks to how it works. First, the brain is divided into two parts, the left and right side.

14

Have a member of the group come up and label the left and right side of the brain on the bird’s eye view diagram. Guide the volunteer to draw a line down the middle of the diagram and label each side. Label the right side, the ‘Right Hemisphere’ and the left side ‘Left Hemisphere’.

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Say Then there is the cerebrum, cerebellum, and the brain stem. The cerebrum is the part of the brain that most people recognize. It makes up most of the brain and is in charge of complex functions like thoughts and actions. It is also responsible for processing most of the body’s sensory information.

16 Choose a volunteer to come up and label the cerebrum on the brain diagram.

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17

Say The cerebellum is the ‘little brain’. It also is divided into two halves and controls movement posture and balance. So when you almost trip and fall, the cerebellum is alerted to help you steady yourself and stand up straight again.

18 Choose a volunteer to come up and label the cerebellum on the brain diagram.

19

Say Finally, the brain stem. It is responsible for those things that we do all the time that we barely notice such as breathing, blinking, and the heart rate.

20 Have a member come to label the brain stem on the brain diagram.

21 Say For today’s activity, we’re going to focus on the cerebrum. The cerebrum controls what we do, think, and sense.

22 Divide members among the different activity stations.

23 Explain that each member will use the materials provided at the stations to create Thinking caps.

24 Make sure each member has a swim cap and permanent markers.

25 Tell members to write their names on the inside of the cap.

26 Have the members pair up in each group.

27

Say to create our thinking caps, we are going to draw a diagram of the lobes of the brain on outside of the cap. Each member will assist their partner in creating the Thinking cap by drawing and labeling each other’s swim cap brain.

28 Instruct members to put on the swim caps. Members who are unable to get the caps on, can tape the cap to the side of their heads to represent the left or right side of the brain.

29

Say The frontal lobe is the in the front, upper area of the cerebrum. Located right behind the forehead, we use the frontal lobe every day to make decisions. We use it for problem solving, speech, movement and emotions. Let’s practice using our frontal lobe! Say “Summer Brain Gain is Sweet Success.”

30

Draw the frontal lobe on the brain outline you started on the board and have members copy by drawing and labeling it on their partner’s swim cap in black. Be sure to tell members to draw the lobe on both sides of the cap so that when they put the cap on, it becomes a 3D diagram. Members who have taped their caps on will have to label each side. Show them how to tape, label, un-tape, and re-tape the swim caps.

31 Using different colored markers, repeat these steps to diagram the

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temporal, parietal and occipital lobes.

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Say The temporal lobe is the bottom middle area of the cerebrum that is responsible for hearing. The parietal lobe is the upper back part of the cerebrum that is responsible for touch, taste, temperature and pain. The final lobe is the occipital lobe that is at the back. It is responsible for vision. Remember these are the lobes of the cerebrum.

33 Ask Have we covered all of the senses? (no, we have not identified a lobe for sense of smell)

34 Explain that the area of the brain responsible for smell is called the Olfactory bulb. The olfactory bulb is located underneath the frontal lobes of the brain.

35 Ask Who can tell me the other two areas of the brain that we learned about earlier? If members struggle, use clues like “the little brain” to trigger answers of the cerebellum and the brain stem.

36 Once you have outlined all 4 lobes, allow the members to switch roles, with one partner wearing the swim cap, while the other draws the diagram.

37 Say Now that we have our thinking caps, we are going to see what you all remember. Before that, I want to review where the lobes are, now that your caps are on. Copy me.

38

Review the names of the lobes, the functions that they are responsible for and their locations by putting your hands on that are of your head. For example, say “Frontal lobe makes decisions, controls emotions, actions and problem solving” while touching the forehead or the frontal area of the head. Members will repeat what you say and also touch their forehead.

39 Once all lobes have been reviewed, tell members to close their eyes.

40

Say I’m going to give you clues and you will touch the lobe that corresponds with the clue. For example, if I say, I control sight. You would touch what lobe? Members should touch the occipital lobe at the back of the head.

41 Start the game by asking members to identify the lobes of the brain without looking.

42 Say Where is your frontal lobe? Where is your occipital lobe? Where is your parietal lobe? Where is your temporal lobe?

43 Correct members are you go, so that they will begin to remember.

44

Give members clues for the next few minutes as they practice identifying what lobe does what. Once they get the hang of the game, try harder clues that link the brain to energy. For example, say, this lobe is responsible for seeing lightning. This

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lobe is responsible feeling heat. Members will have to reason which lobe is used for what sense.

45 Once the game is over, allow members to open their eyes.

46 Instruct members to return to their seats once they have finished their diagrams.

47 Allow members to remove their caps and add to the diagrams, drawing pictures or writing examples of activities each lobe of the brain is responsible.

48 Leave a few minutes to clean up and wrap up the session.

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What You Need Handout: Nervous System ID Cards (per facilitator)

Scissors (per facilitator)

How to Prepare


Print and cut enough copies of the Nervous System ID cards to give one card to each member

Steps to Follow

1 To begin the lesson, review the 5 sense organs: eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin.

2 Identify which senses they are connected to and then ask, which system of the body are the sensory organs apart of? (The nervous system)

3

Say The nervous system is the command center of the body, sending messages to and from the brain. The two major parts of the nervous system are the central and peripheral nervous system. The central nervous system consists of the brain, and spinal cord. It receives, processes, and sends messages to the body through the peripheral nervous system.

4 How does the brain know what to do? What signals the brain? (Neurons or Nerve cells)

5 Say The peripheral nervous system connects the brain to your senses. This part of the nervous system is made up of sensory and motor neurons.

Monday Activity 3: The Nervous System


Description: Member will model how signals are sent between the central and peripheral nervous system.

Objective: By the end of the lesson, members will recognize that sensory neurons send messages to the brain and motor neurons receive messages from the brain.

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6 Say Sensory neurons carry messages from your sense organs to the brain. Motor neurons carry messages from the brain to the areas of the body that need to react.

7 Say Everyone stand up. Let’s act it out. You are going to model how messages are passed to and from the brain.

8

Pass out the Nervous System ID cards to assign roles to each member. Choose 4 members from the group. Assign a member to represent each:

1) The Brain 2) The Spinal cord 3) Sensory organ

4) Responding organ

9 Divide the remaining members in half, assigning half of them as sensory and the other half as motor neurons.

10

Tell members to line up, sensory neurons facing motor neurons. All neurons should have their arms by their sides, palms faced up. The spinal cord should stand at one end, between the last sensory neuron and the first motor neuron. Explain that sensory and motor neurons in the body are similar to a two-lane expressway. The signals they send travel in opposite directions in the body.

11 Have the sensory organ stand next to the first sensory neuron.

12 Have the responding organ stand next to the last motor neuron. Members should be in the shape of an arch.

13

Say You have stepped on a rock and the rock is hurting your foot. When I say go, the impacted area will say ‘Ow’ and slap the hand of the first sensory neuron. The first sensory neuron will slap the hand of the second sensory neuron and so on. When the sensation reaches the spinal cord, you will slap the “brain”. All messages must pass through the neurons of the spinal cord, before reaching the brain. Next, the “brain” will do 5 jumping jacks and then slap the hand of the spinal cord. The spinal cord will slap the hand of the first motor neuron who will pass the signal down the line to the end. When the signal gets to the reacting area of the body, that person will stomp their foot as if to step off of the rock in order to stop the pain.

14 Say Let’s try it.

15 Try the simulation and remind members that all of this happens in a matter of a second.

16 If there’s time, have members switch roles and try again, seeing if they can go any faster.

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17 Repeat the simulation for again.

18

Say Imagine that this happens every time you move any part of your body, even just a little bit. As you crack a knuckle or yawn, neurons are sending messages to and from the brain. Even when you are just breathing and digesting food, your nervous system is working. The body is working, using energy.

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Monday Cool Down Estimate Time: 15min

Steps to Follow

1

Say Imagine that this happens every time you move any part of your body, even just a little bit. As you crack a knuckle or yawn, neurons are sending messages to and from the brain. Even when you are just breathing and digesting food, your nervous system is working. The body is working, using energy.

2 Collect materials, and Store for later.

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Monday Handout: Five Senses Futuristic Humanoid Portraits Template

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Picture Source: www.braininjuryhub.co.uk

Monday Handout: Lobes of the Brain

http://www.braininjuryhub.co.uk/information-library/an-introduction-to-the-brain

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Brain

Spinal Cord

Sensory Organ

Responding Organ

First Sensory Neuron

Last Sensory Neuron

Monday Handout: Nervous System ID Cards

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Nervous System ID Cards

Motor Neuron

Sensory Neuron

Motor Neuron

Sensory Neuron

Motor Neuron

Sensory Neuron

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Nervous System ID Cards

Motor Neuron

Sensory Neuron

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Tuesday Warm-up Lesser Known Senses Improv


Estimated Time: 15min

What You Need

None

How to Prepare

Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work

area and pull out all materials.

Steps to Follow

1

Say Most of you have heard of the 5 basic senses: smell, touch, taste, sounds, and sight. Some scientists believe that there are more. Depending upon who you are talking to, there are believed to be between 5-21 human senses. Of these lesser known senses, 4 are being taken seriously, changing how we think about the senses.

2 Say Your senses are the different ways the body observes the world around them. Each sense is usually attached to a sensory organ.

3 Ask Can you think of additional ways in which your body observes the world around you? What name would you give this method of observation if it had to be named as a sense?

4

Act out the following scenarios in front of the members. 1) Proprioception – Body Awareness (Have the members

instruct you to change the position of your limbs while you keep your eyes closed)

2) Thermoception – Heat (You enter a room and feel a gust of heat coming from a nearby air vent)

3) Equilibrioception –Balance (While trying to walk a straight line, you find yourself off balance.)

4) Nociception – Pain (While typing, you notice that your wrist is aching)

Tuesday: Sensorymania

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5 After each demonstration, ask the members to come up with a name for the sense being demonstrated.

6

Discuss each sense further, identifying the name of the lesser known sense and the sense organs that could be responsible. In instances where the members are stuck, have them consider existing sensory organs.

7 Say Is it possible that your sensory organs can be used to detect more than one kind of stimulus? Does the skin detect more than just touch? Do the ears detect more than just sound?

8 Say The next few days will be spent investigating the senses more thoroughly. We will explore as many aspects of the senses that we can and use our findings to design super sensing technology.

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Tuesday Activity 1: Through the Eyes

Location: Learning center or multipurpose room Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will make observations of the eye to identify its parts and observe how the eyes change to focus images from different distances and positions.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to recognize parts of the eye.

What You Need

Handout: Eye Anatomy card (per facilitator)

Handout: Eye Observation (per member)

Scissors (per facilitator)

Magnifying glass (per team)

Pencil (per member)

Box of colored pencils (per team)

How to Prepare


Print and cut enough copies of the Eye Anatomy cards handouts for each member to have 1 card.

Print enough copies of the Eye Observation Sheets for each member.

Make sure the room you are using is well lit.

Steps to Follow

1 To begin this activity, ask, which sense organ detects images and light? (Eyes)

2 Say During this activity we are going to explore our sense of sight. Let’s begin with the eyes.

3 Organize members into pairs.

4 Distribute 2 pencils, a box of colored pencils, a magnifying glass, and the Eye Observation sheet to each pair.

5 Explain that you are going to go over the handout together.

6 Say With your partner you are, first, going to create a diagram of the eye.

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7

Say To begin, close your eyes and gently use your fingers to feel the shape of the eye through your eyelids. Gently hold your eye, placing a few fingers on the top lid and a few fingers on the bottom lid. While holding, slowly move your eyeball around to see if you can feel and visualize the shape of your eye.

8 After a few seconds of observation, have the members draw the shape of the eye based on what they feel.

9

Next, say, using the magnifying glass, each partner will take turns observing an open eye. Look at your partner’s eye, paying attention to every detail. See if you can identify 5 parts. Draw every part that you observe. Use the colored pencils to add more details

10 Members may know the names of some parts of the eye, but it is not necessary to complete the activity.

11 Pass out an eye card to each member and instruct them to paste it onto the designated area of the page.

12 Ask What kind of energy do the eyes detect? (Light energy)

13

Say Light enters the eye through the cornea. It is a clear outer covering that bends light so that it can enter the pupil. This bending of light is called refraction. The pupil appears as a black circle in the center of the eye. It is a part of the iris, which is the colored part of the eye surrounding the pupil. The iris will open and close around the pupil to control the amount of light that comes in. Once light passes through the pupil, it passes through the lens. The lens bends the light further, flipping the rays upside down and towards the retina. How well you see is based on the light reaching the retina at an exact spot called the fovea. Neurons in the retina, process the different rays of light in to electrical impulses. These electrical impulses travel along the optic nerve to the brain. The brain translates the signals into an image.

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Tuesday Activity 2: Finding Focus


Description: Members will observe how the eyes change to focus images from different distances and positions.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to describe how parts of the eyes change to focus an image.

What You Need

Handout: Finding Focus (per team)

Magnifying glass (per team)

Pencil (per team)


Measuring tape (per team)

Small red ball (per team)

How to Prepare


Print enough copies of the Finding Focus handout for each group.

Wrap each red ball in a piece of paper for each group.

Make sure the room you are using is well lit.

Steps to Follow

1 Say Now that we know how vision works, let’s explore how the eyes work to focus images up close and far away.

2 Join members to form groups of 4.

3 Distribute the Finding Focus handout and a pencil to each group.

4 Say with your group, explore how the eyes change when looking at an object up close, far, and on the periphery. The periphery is the side.

5 Distribute the wrapped objects, magnifying glasses and measuring tape.

6 Say The object you are going to observe is wrapped to help control the investigation. Do not remove it from the wrapping until instructed to begin.

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7 Assign groups to different areas of the room.

8

Have the members of each group select one of the following roles: 1) Test Subject 2) Close up Lab Tech 3) Far away Lab Tech 4) Periphery Lab Tech

9

Say Follow the instructions on the Eye Observation sheet to complete the investigation. Start with the Close Up Observation.

10

Review the instructions briefly for each observation, as needed: Close Up Observation

1) Have the Test Subject stand against the wall. 2) Next, the Close up Lab Tech will measure a distance of 6ft

in front of the Test Subject. 3) From 6ft away, the Close up Lab Tech will unwrap and

hold the object in front of the Test Subject for them to see.

4) Next, the Close up Lab Tech will walk slowly towards the Test Subject until the Test Subject says “Clear”. The Test Subject must say clear when the details of the object are most visible.

5) As the Close up Lab Tech is running this part of the investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject. Use magnifying glasses to observe changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.

6) On the observation sheets the observers will record the direction in which the eyes move, changes in the pupils, distance at which focus is the most clear and a the Test Subject’s description of the object based on what they can see.

Far Away Observation

1) Have the Test Subject stand against the wall. 2) Next, the Far Away Lab Tech will measure a distance of

6ft in front of the Test Subject. 3) From 6ft away, the Far Away Lab Tech will hold the

object in front of the Test Subject for them to see. 4) Next, the Far Away Lab Tech will walk away from the

Test Subject until the Test Subject says “Unclear”. The Test Subject must say clear when the details of the object become cloudy.

5) As the Far Away Lab Tech is running this part of the

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investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject. Use magnifying glasses to observe changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.


Periphery Observation

1) Have the Test Subject stand 6ft in front with their eyes forward.

2) Next, the Periphery Lab Tech will measure a distance of 6ft behind the Test Subject.

3) From 6ft behind, the Periphery Lab Tech will hold the object out and begin walking around slowly to the front of the Test Subject. As the Periphery Lab Tech walks around, they should maintain the distance of 6ft and hold out the object out in front of them to be sure the Test Subject sees the object and not the Lab Tech.

4) When the Test Subject sees the object the Test Subject must say “Object in Sight”.

5) As the Periphery Lab Tech is running this part of the investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject. Use magnifying glasses to observe changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.


11 Allow members 20 minutes to complete the activity.

12 Once time is up, have the members clean up, collect all of the materials, and prepare for closing discussion.

13

Say The lens of the eye changes shape to get objects into focus. For objects that are close, it becomes more rounded. Squinting causes the same effect. For objects that are far away, the lens stretches. As well, when looking at objects close up, the eyes move together. As you move the object further away from your eyes, the eyes move apart.

14 Ask What happens to the eyes when trying to observe objects on the periphery?

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15

Say Anything outside your center field of vision is your peripheral vision. Remember that the eyes take in a certain amount of light. This light is refracted and sent through the eye to the retina. The central point of the retina is the fovea. This area is responsible for sharp central vision. Because of its location, it receives the most direct light. The area around outside of the center of gaze is responsible for peripheral vision.

16 Ask based on your observations, is peripheral vision stronger than central vision?

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Tuesday Activity 3: Energy in Sound

Location: Learning Center or Tech Center Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will model how sound works.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to describe how vibrations become sound waves.

What You Need

Cereal bowl [ceramic] (per facilitator)

Plastic Wrap (per facilitator)

Five-foot long pieces of string (per facilitator)

Rubber bands (per facilitator)

2 Salt packets (per facilitator)

Whistle (per facilitator)

Cereal bowl [ceramic] (per team)

Plastic Wrap (per team)

Five-foot long pieces of string [per team]

Rubber bands (per team)

2 Salt packets (per team)

Whistle (per member)

How to Prepare


Cut string into 5-foot long pieces of string for each group.

Organize the materials for the activity in sets for each group and yourself. Be sure to include:

1) Plastic Wrap 2) Cereal bowl 3) Whistle 4) Rubber band 5) Salt packets

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Steps to Follow

1 Gather members together.

2 Ask Have you ever seen someone shatter glass with their voice and wondered how that happens?

3 Say That shattered glass demonstrates the power of sound energy. But how is the invisible force of sound strong enough to break glass? We are going to explore that today.

4 Divide members into groups and distribute the pre-set materials to each group

5 Once everyone has settled, have a member of each group stretch a piece of plastic wrap tightly across the top of the cereal bowl.

6

Have the group tap the plastic wrap to make sure it is stretched tightly across the bowl. If not, have each group adjust the plastic wrap. If the plastic wrap will not cling well and stay tight, use a rubber band to secure the plastic wrap to the bowl. Stretching the rubber band over the plastic wrap, around the rim of the bowl

7 Instruct a member from each group to sprinkle 3 pinches of salt over the plastic wrap.

8

Next, demonstrate how to blow the whistle over the plastic wrap. You do not have to actually blow the whistle, just show the members how close the whistle blows should be to the plastic wrap.

9 Distribute whistles to each member.

10 Tell the members to blow whistles, one at a time, as close to the plastic wrap and salt as possible. Warn the members not to touch the plastic wrap while blowing the whistle.

11 Discuss observations.

12 Ask How does the sound move the salt?

13 After some discussion transition to the next observation.

14 Give members a minute to find a partner and identify themselves as Partner 1 and Partner 2.

15 Instruct Partner 1 to cover their ears with their hands.

16 Instruct the Partner 2 to loop string around Partner 1’s head and hands.

17 With one hand, Partner 2 should hold both ends of the string out in front of Partner 1.

18 While pulling gently, Partner 2 will use their free hand to pluck the string.

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19 After a few plucks, ask Partner 1 if they hear anything. What do they hear?

20 Ask Partner 2 do you hear anything?

21 Tell the partner holding the string to adjust how tight the string is and then pluck the string again.

22 Ask Does the sound change? What do you hear now Partner 1?

23 Tell Partner 2 to make the string looser.

24 Ask Does the sound change? What do you hear now?

25 Have partners switch and run the same tests by adjusting the tightness of the string and plucking to hear the different sounds.

26 After a few minutes, bring the attention of all members back to the front.

27

Say In the first activity we saw sound. Sound created the vibrations that made the salt jump around on the plastic wrap. In the second activity we heard those same vibrations, which are the building blocks of every sound that we hear.

28

Say Recall what you observed during the first activity, as you blew the whistle, you were exerting a force of air on the whistle to create a sound. The sound waves produced from each blow, travel toward the plastic seal moving around the salt on top. The harder you blew, the louder the sound and stronger the vibration. As a result, what happened to the salt?

29 Say This is what causes glass to break as someone sings a note. As the sound waves hit the glass, it begins to vibrate, eventually vibrating with enough force that it shatters.

30

Ask So, coming back to our original thoughts and questions, how does sound energy work? What did you hear working when your partner plucked the string? Member may say that they heard vibrations.

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Tuesday Cool Down Estimated Time: 15min

Steps to Follow

1

Say Sound is the movement of energy through waves. Sound is created when a force causes an object to vibrate. As sound waves travel, they cause objects to vibrate. Upon plucking the string, you exerted a force on an object, and what happened as a result? (It vibrated) In fact, you heard and felt vibrations as they traveled through the string. When you listen to music sound waves cause your ear drums to vibrate as they enter your ears. The vibrations stimulate auditory nerves and are turned into an electrical signal that is sent to your brain to interpret.

2 Have members clean stations and prepare for the end of the session


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Tuesday Handout: Eye Observation

Diagram of the Eye

Draw a picture of the eye based on what you felt and imagined when your eyes were

closed.

Once you receive the Eye Card, paste it below.

With your partner, discuss how the image you drew was similar or different from the actual eye.

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Tuesday Handout: Eye Anatomy Cards

Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Human_eye_diagram-sagittal_view-NEI.jpg

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Close Up Instructions

1. Have the Test Subject stand against the wall.

2. Next, the Close up Lab Tech will measure a distance of 6ft in front of the Test Subject.

3. From 6ft away, the Close up Lab Tech will unwrap and hold the object in front of the Test Subject for them to see.

4. Next, the Close up Lab Tech will walk slowly towards the Test Subject until the Test Subject says “Clear”. The Test Subject must say clear when the details of the object are most visible.

5. Measure the distance at which the object becomes the most clear.

6. As the Close up Lab Tech is running this part of the investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Close Up Observation As the object moved closer to the Test Subject, how did the appearance of the eyes change?

Did the pupils get larger or smaller?

As the object moved closer to the Test Subject in what direction did the eyes move?

Draw a picture of the eyes below to describe the changes you saw.

At what distance did the object appear most clear?

Tuesday Handout: Finding Focus Tuesday Handout: Finding Focus

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Far Away Instructions

1. Have the Test Subject stand against the wall.

2. Next, the Far Away Lab Tech will measure a distance of 6ft in front of the Test Subject.

3. From 6ft away, the Far Away Lab Tech will hold the object in front of the Test Subject for them to see.

4. Next, the Far Away Lab Tech will walk away from the Test Subject until the Test Subject says “Unclear”. The Test Subject must say clear when the details of the object become cloudy.

5. Measure the distance at which the Test Subject loses focus of the object.

6. As the Far Away Lab Tech is running this part of the investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Far Away Observation

As the object away from the Test Subject, how did the appearance of the eyes change? Did the pupils get larger or smaller?

As the object moved away from the Test Subject in what direction did the eyes move?

Draw a picture of the eyes below to describe the changes you saw.

At what distance did the Test Subject lose focus of the object?

Tuesday Handout: Finding Focus

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Periphery Instructions

1. Have the Test Subject stand 6ft in front with their eyes forward.

2. Next, the Periphery Lab Tech will measure a distance of 6ft behind the Test Subject.

3. From 6ft behind, the Periphery Lab Tech will hold the object out and begin walking around slowly to the front of the Test Subject. As the Periphery Lab Tech walks around, they should maintain the distance of 6ft and hold out the object out in front of them to be sure the Test Subject sees the object and not the Lab Tech.

4. When the Test Subject sees the object the Test Subject must say “Object in Sight”.

5. As the Periphery Lab Tech is running this part of the investigation, members who are not acting as Lab Techs are responsible for observing changes in the eyes of the Test Subject.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Periphery Observation

How did the appearance of the eyes change to see the object on the periphery?

Did the pupils get larger or smaller?

In what direction did the eyes move to view the object on the periphery? Draw a picture of the eyes below to describe the changes you saw.

Where was the object when it appeared in the Test Subject’s line of sight

Tuesday Handout: Finding Focus

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Wednesday Warm-up Sensory Combos

Location: Learning Center or Multipurpose Room Estimated Time: 20min

What You Need

Paper (per member)

Pencil (per member)

Bag of popped Popcorn (per facilitator)

M&M’s (per facilitator)

How to Prepare


Make sure there is enough popcorn and M&M to provide each member with a sample. Members may choose one of the food items to use during the Taste/Smell activity.

Steps to Follow

1 Ask What does it mean to sense something? If members struggle to give an answer, guide them to think about the five senses that they explored.

2 Say To have an ability to detect and receive information about something specific. To hear is to have the ability to detect and receive sound information.

3 Ask If you could create a new sense, what would yours be?

4 Choose a few members to share with everyone.

5

Say This new sense would be a 6th sense. People often think of a sixth sense as a superpower like reading someone’s mind but scientists recognize that a human’s sixth sense is balance; being able to sense when you are about to fall or not upright. Take a few minutes and brainstorm how your 6th sense would work. Use what we have learned so far.

6 Ask How would the nerves signal the brain? How would this sense detect energy? Members can write their ideas down.

7 Have members pair up and share their ideas with a partner.

Wednesday: I’ve Got A Feeling

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8 Ask What if your sixth sense added to an existing sense? What if, instead of seeing color, you could also smell color?

9

Say This actually exists. It is called synesthesia which means that you perceive things with more than one sense. There are people who hear shapes and taste letters and numbers. For example, every time you see the number 8, you see it but you also have a bitter taste in your mouth.

10 Vision/Balance Have all members stand up.

11 Have all members stand up.

12 Say Press down through your left foot while lifting up the right foot. Focus on something still in front of you and you can use your arms to balance.

13 Have members hold this as long as they can, up to 30 seconds. Then ask them to switch and try to balance on the opposite leg.

14 Say Now, come back to your left leg. Find your balance and then close your eyes.

15 Give members another 30 seconds to play with their balance and then tell them to put their foot down.

16 Ask Was that easier or harder than balancing with your eyes open?

17 Say So we can see how sight and balance are related. Everyone sit down.

19 Taste/Smell

Walk around and give each member a few kernels of popcorn or an M&M.

20 Say Pinch your nose, breathing through your mouth and eat your snack.

21 Ask Could you taste it?

22

Say Smell and taste work together too. Just how we spoke earlier about smelling something good and your mouth watering. When you’re sick and you can’t smell, can you taste what you eat? Usually, you can’t because your smell nerves aren’t working the way they should be.

23

Say So there are many ways that our senses work together, often all at the same time, in order to help us complete the tasks that we do every day.

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Wednesday Activity 1: Engage Your Senses

Location: Learning center and Tech center Estimated Time: 60min

Description: Members will test the limits of their senses.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to describe how each sense works.

What You Need

Computer connected to the Internet and speakers (per facilitator)


Projector (per facilitator)

Radio (per facilitator) (optional)

24 Paper cups (per facilitator)

An age-appropriate book (per facilitator)

6 Scented oils (per facilitator)

5 socks (per facilitator)

Things to fill the sock with: Lego piece, marbles, play dough, rice, paper, a broken crayon, sand, gravel/small rocks, dirt, cereal (per facilitator)

Paper (per member)

Pencil (per member)

Index card (per member)

1 bag potato chips (per facilitator)

1 bag of grapes (per facilitator)

1 bar unsweetened chocolate (per facilitator)

1 bottle of lemon juice (per facilitator)

4 Small 5 oz. cups (per member)

Plastic gloves (per facilitator)

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Taste buds on the Tongue, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes (per team)

How to Prepare


Using an online media source or music housed at the club, preselect music for the hearing investigation. Select a song to fit each of the following categories:

1) No Lyrics (instrumental) 2) Unfamiliar Lyrics 3) Familiar lyrics

Come up with a list of 10-15 sound that you will use to test the members during the hearing activity. For each sound come up with an easy way to create that sound, select a few sounds that can be interpreted as the same thing or are challenging to identify with the ears alone.

Create a list identifying each scent and number each scent. Prepare the smelling cups by adding a drop of each scent into individual cups. Write the number of the scent on the cups so that you will be able to identify the mystery scents.

Place 4 cups of each scent at different stations in the room.

Using the plastic gloves, prepare a small sample of each food item for members to taste. Each member will have 4 samples. Place each sample in a 5 oz. cup.

Set up the video Taste buds on the Tongue, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes to cue on the overhead projector.

Collect 5 small objects of different shapes and sizes. In each sock,

place an item and tie the sock closed.

Steps to Follow

1 Say The senses do a lot for us. They take in information, sometimes simultaneously. The body takes in this information and the brain has to decode it all. Let’s explore them in action.

2 HEARING

Ask Where does the energy from sound come from? (Vibrations)

3 Experiment with listening. Start by playing the song with no lyrics. As the members listen to the music, begin reading a book rhythmically.

4 Ask Could you listen to both me and the music? What kind of music was playing? What was the section I read about?



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5 Try this again, this time play a song with unfamiliar lyrics and then begin reading another page.

6 Ask Could you easily hear and understand both me and the music? If not, which sound did you listen to more?

7 Play the final song that has familiar lyrics and continue reading from the book.

8 Ask How many of you really liked the song? If so, was it hard to tune the song out in order to listen to me? If you don’t know or like the song, was it easier to listen to me?

9

Say It is easier to hear and understand me when I am the only sound that you hear. You could still hear and understand me when the music with no lyrics was playing because your brain processes my talking as lyrics to a song. I was talking to a rhythm and the brain could handle that. It got harder to listen to me when songs with lyrics were played because your brain was trying to process my words and the singer’s words and the music. It got worse when you actually knew what the lyrics were and could sing them in your head. The brain has to facilitate and control all of that activity: listening to two different sets of talking, listening to the rhythm of the music, processing you singing the song in your head and maybe even tapping your foot or nodding your head. So what will usually happen is, the brain will choose the most important sounds. If the ear is more tuned into the song, the brain will tune me out in order to focus on less. If the ear is tuned into me more, the brain probably tuned out the lyrics to the song or maybe even the song altogether.

10

Ask How do you think the brain determines which sound is important? What part of the brain would be activated if you made the decision to listen to the story over the song with familiar lyrics? (Frontal lobe)

11 Say When trying to focus on specific sounds, you can train yourself to tune things out and focus on specific sounds. It just takes practice and focus.

12 Say Now that we know how to listen, let’s test how well we listen.

13 Tell members to take out a piece of paper and label it 1-10.

14

Explain that you will have members close their eyes and listen to the sound that you are making. They will then open their eyes to write down what they think made the sound. They will then close their eyes again and move on to the next sound. There should be no peeking, as you will be moving around the room to make noises and you don’t want to give away any clues.

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15 When all of the sounds have been made, review the members’ ideas and then reveal the true sounds.

16 Ask which part of the brain needs to be exercised to improve listening skills? (temporal lobe)

17 Experiment with listening. Start by playing the song with no lyrics. As the members listen to the music, begin reading a book rhythmically.

18 SMELL

Say What do you smell? Close your eyes and tell us what this room smells like to you?

19 Say What do you smell? Close your eyes and tell us what this room smells like to you?

20

Say Our sense of smell is important. It informs our brain about when something smells weird or rotten. Based on the smell, our brain may tell us to walk in another direction, our brain may convince us that the food is gross, even if it doesn’t taste too bad. Smells are powerful; they also tell us when something smells good. When we smell good things, our mouths may water because it smells so good that we believe it probably tastes even better.

21 Set up the pre-made smelling cups,

22 Explain that members will travel in groups of 4 to each station with a piece of paper. Each station houses a specific scent. The cups are numbered.

23 Say With your teams, try to identify each smell. Also, write down the number of the cups that hold the strongest and weakest smells.

24 Allow groups to stay at each station for 1-2 minutes.

25 Once the investigation is complete, gather members together to discuss results.

26 As a whole group, determine which cups had the strongest and weakest smells.

27 Ask How do you determine if a smell is strong or weak? Do some members seem to have a stronger sense of smell than others?

28 Say The Olfactory bulb sends messages to several parts of the brain. As a result, the sense of smell benefits our emotional memory.

29 What happens if you keep smelling something for an extended period of time? (Your olfactory systems gets fatigue and your ability to recognize the smell decreases.

30 TASTE

Ask How do we taste things? With our tongue.

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31 Ask But how does the tongue work?

32 Say We’re going to have a taste test and see if we can figure it out.

33 Divide members into smaller groups.

34 Distribute premade tasting samples, pencils and paper to each group.

35 Say I’m sure you guys can identify these foods by looking at them, but how does your tongue identify them? Your tongue can’t see.

36

Explain that each group is going to taste each food, making sure that everyone gets to taste everything. Write the name of the food down on your paper. Next to the food name, write down a description of what you taste and where you taste it.

37

Say For example, if you pick up an onion, you would write onion and maybe describe the taste as strong and bitter. Then you would write that you taste the onion mostly on the right side of the tongue or on the middle of your tongue.

38 Give members time to complete the activity.

39 When everyone is done, ask, has anyone every looked at their tongue?

40

Say It’s all bumpy. Well those bumps are your taste buds or your tasting nerves. And we know that nerves send the signals to the brain. But all of our taste buds are not the same. Some of our taste buds taste sweet, some of them taste sour, bitter, or salty. Those are the four main tastes that we can taste. All of the other flavors are complex combinations of those 4 main tastes.

41 Ask Where are the sweet taste buds? Where are the salty ones?

42 Say Let’s see if we can figure it out.

43 Review the groups’ discoveries. Where did they taste the sour sample? Did they identify the tastes right? For example, did they label the lemon as bitter or did some say it was salty?

44 With your team, draw a Tongue Map. On this map, identify where the 4 types of taste buds are located.

45 Show the video, Tastebuds on the Tongue, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes

46 To close this activity, compare the group’s idea with where the taste buds actually lie.

47 Ask Which lobe of the brain is responsible for taste (parietal lobe)


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48 TOUCH

Say Which organ is responsible for our sense of touch? (skin)

49 Ask Where do we have skin?

50 Say Right. Everywhere. Our whole body is covered in skin, so we can experience touch through our toes, hands and fingers, cheeks, etc.

51 Gather all members in a circle.

52

Explain that everyone will close their eyes and you will hand someone in the circle a sock that contains a mystery item. They will feel the sock and pass it around the circle until it gets back to you. When it gets back to you, members will get the opportunity to share their guesses and then you will reveal what is inside the sock.

53 Repeat this process for the remaining 4 socks.

54 Ask How did you use touch to make each guess?

55

Say This is how the brain gets information about the world through touch. You feel for shapes and textures. Without the eyes, the brain has to use your memory to visualize what its feeling. It tries to figure out, what have you seen or felt before that feels like this or is shaped like this?

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Wednesday Activity 2: What’s Your Body Position

Location: Learning center or Available Hallway or Narrow Space

Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will explore body awareness by going through a hallway of lasers.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to describe the lesser known sense of proprioception.

What You Need

Computer connected to Internet (per facilitator)

Yarn or crepe paper (per facilitator)

Masking Tape (per facilitator)

Box of Push pins – 100 (per facilitator)

Lost girl 5x10 - Bo laser scenehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZC5hqL8I7w (per facilitator)

2012 Ford Focus self-parking tech demo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-rxJkVzUxI (per facilitator)

2 sheets of Graph paper (per team)


Ruler (per team)

Pencil (per member)

How to Prepare


Identify a location to set up the maze.

Use the box of push pins and the masking tape to create a laser maze. For ideas, watch, Lost girl 5x10 - Bo laser scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZC5hqL8I7w

Cue all videos on the master computer.

Organize a set of design materials for each team. Be sure to include:

1) Graph paper 2) Box of colored pencils 3) Ruler



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4) pencil

Steps to Follow

1

Say We have spent some time exploring the traditional senses, understanding that they are crucial to how we experience the world. But there are lesser known senses. One of them is proprioception. Proprioception is the sense of body awareness; understanding the position of your body at all times and how your body parts work with one another to create movement.

2 Say Everyone close your eyes.

3 Say Put your finger on your nose.

4 Members should have no problem doing this.

5 Ask How did you do that successfully without seeing your nose? How did you know that your nose wasn’t an inch to the left or right of where you pointed?

6 Say That is proprioception. Without having to see it, you know where your neck is. Sitting in your chair, you know that your stomach is below your chest.

7

Say With proprioception, the receptors in the joints and muscles feel changes. Just like with any other sense, the receptors send the information about the changes to the brain and the brain figures out what is happening. You didn’t have to see your hand move or touch it with the other hand for the brain to know what was happening. That is what makes this sense important. It gives you the freedom to move without having to worry about how you are moving. Your feet know how to walk and run, you don’t have to watch them to know that you are doing it right.

8 Explain that members are going to use their sense of proprioception to travel through a maze.

9

Ask members if they have ever seen a scene in a movie where a spy or thief has to travel through a laser maze. No part of their body can touch the lasers or they will be found out. You can show members this clip as a reference: Lost girl 5x10 - Bo laser scenehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZC5hqL8I7w

10

Take members to the maze and explain that each member will travel through the lasers without touching one. If they do touch one, they are out. That member will leave the maze and the next member will go. So that this activity runs smoothly, each member will have 1-2 minutes to complete the maze successfully. This ensures that members do not take up too much time inching their way through the lasers.


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11 Tell members to line up and allow the first member to go, using a watch or clock to keep track of time. Watch members as they move through the lasers to make sure that no laser is touched or moved.

12 After all members have tried, congratulate those who completed the challenge successfully.

13

Say This challenge forces you to be very aware of your body. You must be in control and you have to know what each part of your body is doing to so that you don’t touch the lasers. It is really hard, especially when you are trying. Most of the time that we engage our proprioceptive receptors, we’re not even trying.

14 Bring members back to the main room.

15 Say While you were moving through the lasers, you were using sight to know where to put your feet and hands.

16 Ask What do you think happens when you don’t have body awareness?

17 List some of the members’ answers, offering your own if members need guidance.

18 Say You trip over things, you misjudge how much force you need to put into something, you misjudge how much something can hold or where something fits.

19 Say Give your neighbor a high five.

20 Ask How did you know how hard to hit their hand?

21 Say This is body awareness too. You have to know your own strength and the limitations of your body.

22 Ask How can we translate this to appliances?

23

Say We are going to design an appliance that incorporates sight and body awareness. The appliance doesn’t have to have eyes in the way that we have eyes but we want the appliance to be able to gather visual information, the same way our eyes do. The same goes for body awareness. For example, there is a car that can park itself. It’s true.

24 Show members the following clip: 2012 Ford Focus self-parking tech demo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-rxJkVzUxI

25

Say Not only can the car park itself but it can tell you when there is an available space. That is some awareness. The car has to be aware of what makes a parking space. We usually use our eyes to identify that information, especially to find one that is big enough for the car that we are driving. The car has to have body awareness because is recognizes how far back and how far forward it can go before hitting another car as it parks.


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26 Ask Do appliances demonstrate a sense of body awareness? How is this articulated in their design?

27

Say An appliance demonstrates awareness through the precisions and accuracy of its functions. An appliance without precision or accuracy, may wobble or fall down easily, it may give you too much of something or not enough, and it may constantly hit things, or overheat because it is working too hard or not working hard enough.

28 Organize students into design teams.

29 Distribute pre-made sets of design materials.

30 Say Think about what we have been talking about and design an appliance that uses sight and awareness in some way. Remember that it doesn’t have to use the senses exactly how humans do.

31 Say Talk out your ideas, choose the best one and write it down. Be able to explain to the whole group what your design is and how the appliance uses its “senses”.

32 Give members about 20 minutes, to work on this.

33

After time is up, have each group share their ideas. If a team’s design does not use sight or proprioception correctly, talk through the design as a group and help that Idea Team correct their appliance.

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Wednesday Activity 3: Balance

Location: Learning center or Multipurpose room Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will create balancing shapes out of cardstock.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to learn about equilibrioception and the center of gravity in objects.

What You Need

2 Pennies (per member)

Cardstock (per member)

Colored pencils (per member)

Tape (per member)

Symmetrical shape stencils (per member)

Pencil (per member)

Scissors (per member)

Lined paper (per member)

How to Prepare


Steps to Follow

1

Say Imagine trying to complete the laser challenge without being able to steady yourself. Balance plays an important role in our ability to perceive our body position. Equilibrioception, or balance, is another lesser known sense.

2 Ask What is balance?

3 Say balance is the even distribution of weight that keeps an object upright.

4 Ask Have you ever wondered how circus acts ride unicycles on tightropes?

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5 Say They have amazing balancing ability. How good is your balance?

6 Say Today, we are going to investigate balance. Before we do, we have to have a clear understanding of symmetry.

7 Ask What is symmetry?

8

Say Symmetry is a property that describes when an object is the same on both side. Name some things that are symmetrical. Some examples include: stars, hearts, circles, squares, etc. You can tell if an object is symmetrical by drawing a line that divides it into two equal parts. Only objects that are symmetrical have a line of symmetry.

9 Ask Is the body symmetrical? If so, where is your line of symmetry?

10

Say look at yourself or the person sitting next to you, if you fold yourself in half at your hips, will you divide your body into two equal parts? What about if you fold yourself from shoulder to shoulder?

11 Select a member to demonstrate the line of symmetry at the hips. Place a line of tape across the volunteer from hip to hip.

12 Ask Will this line result in a fold that shows two equal parts? (no)

13 Select another member to demonstrate the line of symmetry from the middle of the fore head to the floor.

14 Ask Will this line result in a fold that shows two equal parts? (Yes)

15

Say Humans are symmetrical vertically, from shoulder to shoulder. [Draw a line with your hand from the top of your head, down your midline.] Each side would have one eye, one nostril, one arm, one leg, etc. Right down the middle. Some things like stars and squares are symmetrical any way you fold them. Humans and hearts are not like that. A heart, like the body, is symmetrical from top to bottom but not from left to right.

16

Say As stated in the beginning, in order to balance, we much have the same amount of weight on both sides of our bodies. It is because the human line of symmetry is vertical, that we are able to stand upright.

17 Organize members into Idea Teams.

18 Ask what happens to our line of symmetry when both sides of the body are not equal? What must you do to regain balance once it is lost?

19

Say in your teams, you are going to complete a challenge. The entire class is going to lose a limb on either side of their body, each group must figure out a way to connect the entire group in a chain. While connected, every part of the chain must maintain balance for

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45 seconds.

20 Tell each member what limbs they will lose. Try assigning this evenly such that there are the same number of people without a left leg and the same number of people without a right leg, etc.

21 Members will come up with a strategy for the whole class using their small groups to practice and strategize.

22 Allow members 10 minutes to come up with ideas providing feedback as needed.

23 Once time is up, allow each group to lead the entire class in creating the Human Balancing Chain.

24 Limit demonstrations to 2-3 minutes to make sure each team gets to try their ideas.

25

Once the demonstrations are complete, say, the middle point of the line of symmetry is called the center of gravity. Most of an objects weight is located at this point. Objects find balance when their center of gravity is located above the supporting area.

26 Ask if I am standing on one foot, where does my center of gravity need to be located in order for balance to be maintained? (Just over the standing leg)

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Steps to Follow

1

Once the demonstrations are complete, say, the middle point of the line of symmetry is called the center of gravity. Most of an objects weight is located at this point. Objects find balance when their center of gravity is located above the supporting area.

2 Ask if I am standing on one foot, where does my center of gravity need to be located in order for balance to be maintained? (Just over the standing leg)


Wednesday Cool Down Estimated Time: 15min

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Thursday Warm-up


What You Need

Paper (per member)

Pencil (per member)

How to Prepare Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work area and pull out all materials.

Steps to Follow

1 Ask What causes you pain?

2 Say We would categorize pain as a bad feeling. But our ability to recognize the intense uncommon sensations that precede or lead to pain, nociception, is a beneficial sense.

3 Ask Without nociception, how would you know something was wrong in your body?

4

Say You could be playing sports or handling something the wrong way and would never know it. Nociception is your body’s way of saying “stop what you are doing, right now. Something is happening and it could be bad.” Hopefully by the time you get this warning you are not hurt or not hurt as badly as you could be. Pain acts as a warning to us that something is wrong. If the pain has already happened, such as a crook in your neck, you know that the way you slept and moved your neck previously is wrong.

5

Say Believe it or not, the perception of pain is a survival mechanism. So that cut may not actually hurt you the way you think it does. For example, the cut may hurt but the brain is telling your body that you are in serious danger, causing enough pain for you to do something about it.

6 Instruct members to gather with their Idea teams.

Thursday: Extraordinary Senses

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7

Say With your team, identify features of appliances that work similarly to the way nociception works in the body? For example, when certain appliances overheat, they shut down to avoid damage.

8 Give teams 5 minutes to come up with additional examples.

9 After members have had time to discuss, have each group share what they came up with.

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Thursday Activity 1: Thermoception

Location: Learning center and Tech center Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will test explore how thermoreceptors detect changes in temperature.

Objective: Members will understand thermoception and how it differs from touch.

What You Need

Handout: Is Theroception a true sense?

Small paper clip (per member)

Blindfold (per member)

Heat pack (per team)

Cold pack(per team)

How to Prepare Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work


Steps to Follow

1 Say Thermoception. The first part of the word, you may know.

2 Ask Can anyone take a guess at what kind of sense Thermo-ception is?

3

Say Heat. More specifically, temperature. Thermoception is your ability to detect or sense temperature differences. In the past, sense of heat was believed to be a form of touch, however, scientist now believe otherwise.

4 Ask How do we know if something is hot or cold, without a thermometer? Members may say steam, or by touch.

5 Ask, What part of our bodies do we use to touch? What part of our bodies feel temperature?

6 Say Although we can sense hot and cold temperatures with most parts of our bodies, we do not use most of our body parts to touch. How is this possible?

7 Say Lets investigate this idea.

8 Divide groups into pairs. Each pair should have two heat packs and two cold packs.

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9 Explain how the experiment will work.

10 Say We will be testing each ability to sense cold, heat, and pressure. We are going to try and discover evidence to prove or disprove that thermoception is a sense.

11 Distribute the IS Theroception a true sense? handout to each pair and briefly review the handout.

12

Explain that you will complete two tests blindfolded: 1) Direct Contact with the Body: In the first test, partners will

take turns pressing the stimuli to each of the body parts listed on the handout. The stimuli are a cold pack, hot pack, and paper clip, each representing temperature or pressure. On the handout, members will tell whether or not they feel the stimulus at each location.

2) Indirect Contact with the body: For test 2, partners will take turns holding the stimuli 10 centimeters from each body part. Listed on the handout. The stimuli are a cold pack, hot pack, and paper clip, each representing temperature or pressure. On the handout, members will tell whether or not they feel the stimulus from10 cm away.

13 Allow members about 15 minutes to complete this activity. If they need more time, you can give about 5 more minutes.

14 After both partners have tested both packs, gather together and review the results.

15

Ask During which test did you feel touch and temperature at the same time? Did you ever feel temperature and not pressure or pressure and not temperature? If you felt temperature and not pressure what would that indicate about thermoception?

16 Explain Thermoception represents the bodies ability to feel temperature. You can feel temperature without being touched by a hot or cold object.

17

Say, although our results indicate that thermoception is separate from touch, it is still connected to the same sense organ. With your groups come up with an explanation for how you can feel two different senses with the same sense organ.

18 Allow members 2 minutes to come up with an explanation.

19 Share and discuss answers as a group.

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Thursday Activity 2 & 3: Sensors

Location: Learning center or Tech center Estimated Time: 30-45min

Description: Members will begin designing sensors for everyday appliances.

Objective: By the end of this activity, members will be able to compare human senses to different kinds of sensor technology.

What You Need

2 Handouts: Engineering Design Process (per member)

Graph paper (per team)

Colored pencils (per team)

Poster Board (per term)

Prototype materials: wires, disposable thermometers, Bubble wrap, plain cotton T-shirts, pipe cleaners, foil, Tape, scrap material, packing peanuts, cotton balls, plastic wrap, popsicle sticks, etc. (per teams)

What is sensor technology?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v25PCV_IJCw (per team)

How does a color sensor work?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay (per team)

What is remote sensing?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBI3MIbzIBA (per team)

How to Prepare Review Steps to Follow for this activity in advance. Set up the work


Steps to Follow

1 Say People who lose a sense, do not walk around with people holding onto their shoulders.

2 Ask How does someone who cannot hear well, detect sound?

3 Guide members toward the answer of hearing aid.

4

Say A hearing aid is a machine that detects sound energy. There are other devices used to detect other senses. This technology that is used to detect changes in the environment is called a sensor. We are going to concentrate on sensors that detect sensory


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information.

5 Ask For example, what technology do we have that detects heat?

6 Say We use thermometers. A thermometer is a sensor.

7

Say Sensors detect sensory information and convert that information into signals. These signals are messages that get sent to the processor as data. This data may initiate an act like shutting down or self-cooling. Ask how is this similar to the way our senses work?

8

Have the members got to the computers to learn more about sensors. Tell members to watch the following videos:

1) What is sensor technology?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v25PCV_IJCw

2) How does a color sensor work?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay

3) What is remote sensing?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBI3MIbzIBA

9

In your design teams, you will create 2 new sensor designs. Your sensors must:

1) Be able to detect 2 or more forms of energy. 2) Be made to enhance a specific appliance or device 3) Mimic one or more of the 5 basic senses. 4) Mimic at least 1 of the lesser known senses.

10 Say Your designs may be drawn on poster boards and or constructed as 3D models. To complete your designs, you will utilize the engineering design process.

11 Distribute 2 Engineering Design Process handouts to each team.

12 Briefly review the worksheet as a whole group.

13 Show members the materials available for use.

14 If there are not any initial questions, allow members to meet with their groups and begin.

15 Encourage members to be creative and specific, using the ideas and concepts that they have been learning about this week.

16 Give members about 20 minutes to brainstorm and design.

17 After time is up, gather members together to share designs.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay

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Thursday Cool Down Estimated Time: 15min

Steps to Follow

1 Discuss what worked well and what needs to be re-designed.

2 Provide instruction for clean-up and identify where members can store their prototypes for use during the Community Sharing event.


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Thursday Handout: Is Thermoception a true sense?

Circle yes or no to identify if you feel a stimulus at each location on the body.

1. Direct contact with the body

2. Indirect contact with the body

Area of the Body

Cold Stimulus

Warm stimulus

Pressure stimulus

Finger tips

Yes or No Yes or No Yes or No

Back of Upper Arm


Forearm


Back of hand


Area of the Body

Cold Stimulus

Warm stimulus

Pressure stimulus

Finger tips


Back of Upper Arm


Forearm


Back of hand


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Thursday Handout: Engineering Design Process

Define the Problem (What is the problem that you are trying to solve? Turn that problem into a question)

Do Background Research (What will you need to know to complete this design?)

Brainstorm Solutions (Write down all of your ideas. Even if they are silly.)

Do Development (Which of your above ideas is the best? Choose one and map it out. How will it work?)

Build a Prototype (What materials do you need?)

Test and Redesign (What happened when you tested your design? How could you re-design it to make it work better?)

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Steps to Follow

1 Welcome and Ask members to form a large circle.

2 Ask members to tell the group one thing that will help the team shine in the Community Sharing event. Discuss answers.

3 Give instructions and times for what will take place today, such as setting up for the event, rehearsing, greeting guests, performing, cleaning-up after the event, etc.

4 Give instructions on the time and place teams should meet before the start of the event. Ask team leaders to be responsible for gathering their members.

Friday Warm-up


Friday: Community Sharing Event

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Friday Community Event: Setting Up

Location: Gym or other spacious area Estimated Time: 20-30min

Description: Members will follow directions, work together to display projects, and rehearse their performances.

Objective: Members will be able to display projects in an attractive manner.

What You Need

Completed Engineering Design handouts from the previous lesson (per team)

Graph paper (per team)

Colored pencils (per team)

Poster Board (per term)

Prototype materials: wires, disposable thermometers, Bubble wrap, plain cotton T-shirts, pipe cleaners, foil, Tape, scrap material, packing peanuts, cotton balls, plastic wrap, popsicle sticks, etc. (per teams)

How to Prepare

Complete the event planner earlier in the week to ensure all aspects are addressed.

Designate areas of the gym for each team’s display.

Designate an area for performances.

Review The Process for this activity in advance. Set up the work area and pull out all materials.

1 Welcome members.

2

Say We have learned about our standard senses, even some lesser known ones, and used that knowledge to develop sensors that can enhance everyday appliances. It is these kinds of adjustments that begin the process of designing robots. A robot is a machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically.

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3 Distribute team materials. Ask teams to display projects in a decorative manner in the assigned areas. Give feedback to ensure attractiveness.

4 Ask teams to rehearse performances.

5 If no one has any initial questions or concerns, allow members to divide into their groups, pull out their materials and get back to work.

6 Walk around the room to supervise and offer any help that may be needed.

7 Once time is up, help members clean up and set up their designs, giving them time for any discussion about how they will present their information.

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Friday Community Event: The Event

Location: Gym or other spacious area Estimated Time: 60 to 90min

Description: Members will showcase their presentations by performing for a community audience.

Objective: Members will use their knowledge of senses and energy to explain their designs to the community.

What You Need

Completed projects (per team)

How to Prepare

Refer to Event Planner

Review The Process for this activity in advance. Set up the work area and pull out all materials.

Steps to Follow

1 Welcome the community.

2

Explain that members have been learning about their energy and this week the focus is the senses. Visitors are invited to visit as many stations as they want to experience what the members have been doing and learning all week. Members have designed appliances modeled after our sense to detect all forms of energy.

3 Walk around to provide assistance to any teams that need it.

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UCSB Science Line." UCSB Science Line. Web. 05 Dec. 2015

http://scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=2577

Our Chemical Senses: Olfaction.” Web. 07 Dec. 2015. https://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/chems.html

Lesson: The Grand Challenge: Simulating Human Vision." The Grand Challenge: Simulating Human Vision. Web. 05 Dec. 2015. https://www.teachengineering.org/view_lesson.php?url=collection/van_/lessons/van_robotic_vision_less1/van_robotic_vision_less1.xml

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Human_eye_diagram-sagittal_view-NEI.jpg

Image Formation and Detection." Image Formation and Detection. Web. 05 Dec. 2015 http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/refrn/Lesson-6/Image-Formation-and-Detection

A Guide to Understanding Your Peripheral Vision."EyeHealthWeb.com. N.p., 20 Aug. 2013. Web. 05 Dec. 2015 http://www.eyehealthweb.com/peripheral-vision/

http://www.masseyeandear.org/for-patients/patient-guide/patient-education/diseases-and-conditions/cornea/function

“Cold Metal.” Exploratorium. 18 Mar. 2015. Web. 6 Dec. 2015. http://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/cold-metal

“Tastebuds on the Tongue.”YouTubce.com, Web. 6 Dec. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuP-Kj7MHes

2012 Ford Focus self-parking tech demo.”YouTubce.com, Web. 6 Dec. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-rxJkVzUxI

How does a color sensor work?,”YouTubce.com, Web. 6 Dec. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReHGkxWDkFQSay

What is remote sensing,”YouTubce.com, Web. 6 Dec. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBI3MIbzIBA

What is sensor technology?, ”YouTubce.com, Web. 6 Dec. 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v25PCV_IJCw

Resources

http://scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=2577

https://www.teachengineering.org/view_lesson.php?url=collection/van_/lessons/van_robotic_vision_less1/van_robotic_vision_less1.xml

https://www.teachengineering.org/view_lesson.php?url=collection/van_/lessons/van_robotic_vision_less1/van_robotic_vision_less1.xml



http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/refrn/Lesson-6/Image-Formation-and-Detection

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/refrn/Lesson-6/Image-Formation-and-Detection

http://www.eyehealthweb.com/peripheral-vision/

http://www.eyehealthweb.com/peripheral-vision/



http://www.exploratorium.edu/snacks/cold-metal



engage express evaluate exhibit - bgca.org

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