Your brain is the most complex part of your body! It is the part of your body that tells you what’s going on around you. The brain even creates the thoughts and feelings that make up your personality! This is definitely a part of the body we need to know more about! The kids and I enjoyed some fun brain activities, this week, that included interesting brain facts, the different parts of the brain and its history.
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Fun Brain Activities for Kids
This week we have been learning some really amazing and fun brain facts thanks to our Horrible Science book “Bulging Brains.”
- Did you know that Aristotle believed your intelligence came from your heart and that the brain was used to merely cool your blood?
- The brain has 100 billion nerve cells!
- Did you know that your nerves take signals from elsewhere in your body to your brain? This means you actually experience pain, touch, taste, smell, sound and vision in your brain, but there are no touch sensors in the brain itself.
More Ideas for Exploring the Brain
Brain Hemisphere Hats & a Brain Song
To create your own brain Hemisphere hat you will need…
- Copies of the Pattern Pages (found here at ellenjmchenry.com)
- Scissors
- Glue or Tape
I printed off the pattern pages from Ellen McHenry’s site and the children started cutting them out. I downloaded Ellen McHenry’s “The Brain Song” and we listened while we worked! This is a FUN song! Once the children had finished cutting out the patterns, we talked about the different parts of the brain. We used our Temporal Lobe to listen to the music and our Frontal Lobe & Cerebellum to cut out our patterns. I then taped the “Brain Hats” together….Our daughter wouldn’t stand still long enough for me to get her hat fitted correctly so hers looks more like a Fez instead, HA!
Frontal Lobe for Problem Solving
The children used their Frontal Lobes for problem-solving with some new puzzles and played games while I read to them about the Frontal Lobe. Neuroscience For Kids is a great website chock full of information about the nervous system. Seriously, I could spend all day there!
The Best Problem-Solving Games for Kids
Here are some of our absolute favorite educational games to get the brain working!
Why is Your Cortex Wrinkly?
To discover why your cortex is wrinkly you will need…
- 2 sheets of paper
- Crumple one sheet of paper into a tight ball.
- Open it, but don’t flatten it.
- Place it on the second sheet of paper.
- What do your children notice about the differences of the 2 pieces of paper?
The wrinkles and bumps on the paper make it take up less space. It’s the same with your cortex. The wrinkles allow a larger area to fit into the limited space between your ears.
Model a Brain
To make a model brain you will need….
- Clay or Playdough
- Picture or diagram of the brain for reference
- Paper Plate
- Pen or Marker
We created a model of the brain using playdough. You can use different colors to indicate the different areas of the brain. Don’t worry if the shape of the brain isn’t exact. We are more concerned with knowing where these areas of the brain are located. We used a paper plate so that we could then label those areas of interest:
- Frontal Lobe
- Motor Cortex
- Sensory Cortex
- Parietal Lobe
- Occipital Lobe
- Temporal Lobe
More Books About the Human Body
If you love science then you may also enjoy…
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Backyard Biology: Birds for Kids
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Hands On Pond Science With An At Home Water Testing Kit
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Make Your Own Solar Oven S’mores
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Fun Brain Activities for Kids
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Easy Rubber Egg Experiment
Fun Brain Activities for Kids
You can find more fun brain activities at Neuroscience For Kids. Next week, I think we’ll dive into Neurons!
Solar System Bracelets are a great hands-on stem activity!
[…] Fun Brain Activities for Kids […]