Lobes of the Brain
The average human brain weighs about 1,400 grams (3 lb). The brain looks a little like a large pinkish-gray walnut. The brain can be divided down the middle lengthwise into two halves called the cerebral hemispheres. Each cerebral hemisphere is divided into four lobes by sulci and gyri. The sulci (or fissures) are the grooves and the gyri are the "bumps" that can be seen on the surface of the brain. The folding created by the sulci and gyri increases the amount of cerebral cortex that can fit in the skull. The total surface area of the cerebral cortex is about 324 square inches or about the size of a full page of a newspaper. Each person has a unique pattern of gyri and sulci.
The brain is divided into 3 main areas:
the brain stem, responsible for basic body functions such as heartbeat regulation;
the cerebellum, responsible for things such as balance and muscular coordination and
the cerebrum, made of two distinct hemispheres and responsible for higher brain functions including thinking and emotions.
The front parts of the brain (thumb side, if your brain is positioned as though its owner were looking at you) are called the frontal lobes. These lobes are responsible for reasoning and higher brain functions. The upper middle lobes (around the middle fingers) are the parietal lobes, responsible for touch. The lower middle lobes and the backs of the hands (nearest the ears in a person) are the temporal lobes, responsible for hearing. Finally, the back lobes (pinkie fingers) are the occipital lobes, responsible for vision.
Create a model of the brain by using clay, playdough, styrofoam, recyclables, food, etc. Create a whole brain or use a brain atlas and create cross-sections of the brain at different levels. Use different colors to indicate different structures.
Materials:
Clay or Playdough or Styrofoam or Recyclables (bottle caps, cups, buttons, etc) OR Food (fruit, jelly beans)
A picture or diagram of the brain
Another nice model can be found in the lesson plan called Potato Head. This lesson was originally from the Brain Power program at the Pacific Science Center and Group Health. In this lesson, you mix potato flakes, sand, warm water, and food coloring in a ziploc bag. The resulting mixture is about the size, weight, and color of an adult human brain. This activity also has a remarkable "WOW!" effect on students. If you have lots of time and money, you can have students in groups make their own potato head brains. Otherwise, makeup 1-4 yourself to pass around the room. They can be rewarmed in the microwave for later classes, to save on material costs. They can be added to a worm bin or garden for disposal.
Brain "Recipes"
Here are two recipes for the construction of a model brain:
Recipe 1 (from the Pacific Science Center and the Group Health Cooperative in Seattle, WA)
Materials:
1.5 cups (360 ml) instant potato flakes
2.5 cup (600 ml) hot water
2 cups (480 ml) clean sand
1 gallon ziplock bag
Combine all of the ingredients in the ziplock bag and mix thoroughly. It should weigh about 3 lbs. (1.35 kg.) and have the consistency of a real brain.
Recipe 2 (from BrainLink)
Materials:
2 cups water
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons cream of tartar
One quarter cup vegetable oil
1 cup salt
Red food coloring
Mix the water, salt, flour, and cream of tartar in a large bowl or blender until the lumps disappear. Then mix in the vegetable oil. Put the entire mixture into a saucepan and "cook" it over low heat until it gets lumpy. Pour the mixture out and let it cool. Then knead and shape it into the form of a brain. Don't forget to add wrinkles (gyri) to your brain. Squirt in red food coloring for blood vessels.
*A)What percentage of your brain do you use?‐Richard E.Cytowic
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what‐percentage‐of‐your‐brain‐do‐you‐use‐richard‐e‐cytowic
*B)What happens when you remove the hippocampus?
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what‐happens‐when‐you‐remove‐the‐hippocampus‐sam‐kean
*C)How sugar affects the brain
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how‐sugar‐affects‐the‐brain‐nicole‐avena
*D)How stress affects your brain
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how‐stress‐affects‐your‐brain‐madhumita‐murgia
Lobe Poems
Individuals or teams create short poems to describe a particular lobe of the brain. Those who didn’t write the poem guess which lobe the poem is describing.
Example poem:
This part of the brain helps you move,
Without it, you couldn’t bust a groove
Coordinating movement for a cool guy swagger,
Without it, you’d look drunk and stagger.
Can you guess what part of the brain this is? Answer: cerebellum.
Brains are similar in many ways between species. These similarities allow us to learn more about our own brains and behavior by studying other animals. At the same time, there are also many differences between species. The relative size of regions with a species’ brain tells us what functions are particularly important to that species: for example, humans have larger frontal regions relative to the rest of their brains. Frontal regions are responsible for mental processes such as reasoning, decision-making, and planning—things that humans are very good at doing!
Key points:
• The overall size of a brain is not the most important factor in determining intelligence (e.g. humans have nowhere near the biggest brain in terms of overall size).
• The brain-to-body mass ratio is a rough measure of the intelligence of an animal (but not without flaws) as well as the amount of “wrinkles” on a brain (surface area to volume ratio).
• Frontal areas relative to the rest of the brain are the biggest in humans.
• Scientists often study other animals’ brains and behavior to learn more about human brains and behavior.
Start by watching the video Brain Play, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPFKwu_quxI where students will meet the parts of the brain and learn about the function of each part. Since this app serves as a connector for all of the Neuro Play Adventures, you may use it to also introduce each of the games listed below.
Discuss what students remember and have learned about the parts of the brain. Ask students which parts they use at recess. Which do they use when doing a writing activity? There are many ways the students’ answers can be correct here, with so many ways the brain is useful!
Ask ‘Why do you say that’ when a student gives a response, and find out more about how the student is thinking about the brain part.
Here are more questions to expand the conversation:
Which parts do you use without knowing?
Which parts do you use at recess?
Ask they have ideas about the parts working together.
Here are some examples.
Making up a dance: Planning and coming up with ideas for a dance uses the cerebral cortex, while performing it involves the cerebellum
Telling a story: The amygdala and hippocampus can work together because your feelings about something will influence how you store the memory.
Solving a math problem: You might use your hippocampus to remember math facts while also using your cerebral cortex to think of how to come up with a way to solve a math problem.
When you think students are ready with some of their own ideas about the functions and roles of the brain parts, have them break into groups and distribute the project materials.
Tell the students
We are going to put our brains to work to draw a cartoon or illustration of someone (it can be you) using at least one part of their brain. Have each student draw a picture such as doing a dance or feeling an emotion, and then label which part of the brain the character is using.
1. The lobe of the brain important for vision is called:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
2. The lobe of the brain important for the sense of touch is called:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
3. The lobe of the brain important for hearing is called:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
4. The lobe of the brain important for reasoning is called:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
5. The lobe on the diagram labeled 1 is:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
6. The lobe on the diagram labeled 2 is:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
7. The lobe on the diagram labeled 3 is:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
8. The lobe on the diagram labeled 4 is:
a. the temporal lobe c. the parietal lobe
b. the occipital lobe d. the frontal lobe
9. An adult brain weighs approximately:
a. 1 lb. b. 3 lb. c. 5 lb. d. 7 lb.
10. A person's brain is about the size of:
a. their heart b. their stomach c. 1 fist d. 2 fists
Answers: 1.b 2.c 3.a 4.d 5.b 6.c 7.a 8.d 9.b 10. d
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