A hundred more second grade kids in Cupertino will answer a resounding "YES" to this question today! We (Sri and I) did a basic presentation on the human brain and sensory functions for all the second graders at Eaton Elementary School yesterday as a part of their annual Enrichment Day activities. For this show we had promised to bring in human brain specimens and thanks to the Science Education Partnership program at UCSF the kids weren't disappointed. We were able to check out two adult human brain specimens from their collection for this presentation. In addition, we also brought in slide viewers with slides of neurons, and had a couple of ideas for group games that would get them talking about some of our body's sensory functions.
Excitement was running high among the kids and group after group came into the classroom with high expectation of seeing and touching a human brain. Expressions ranging from "wow" to "yuck" to "it's squishy" to "this is so cool" were all to be found as the kids put on gloves and felt the preserved human brain specimens. Some kids couldn't wait to get their hands on the specimens but some others were initially hesitant. By the end of the day there wasn't a single child who hadn't felt and touched the specimens. Curiosity won over any fear or revulsion. The questions and conversations that the kids had also covered a wide range from the most frequent "Where did this brain come from?" to discussing what would happen if you fell of a bike and hit your head. We heard some stories of what happened to so and so when they had an accident or hit their head from kids who clearly enjoyed narrating them, to others who wanted to be reassured that no one got their brains taken out without their permission and that these brain specimens came from dead people! For even some of the teachers and parent helpers, seeing a human brain was a first!
The group games were also a big hit. One game involved having you and your partner trace a letter on each other's back and trying to recognize it solely based on the sense of touch. This game was a lot of fun and perhaps a bit ticklish for some! The second game had one child in a blindfold trying to locate his friends around him based on which direction he can hear them calling out to him. They were hugely entertained and it was quite a riot!
The biggest reward for all our efforts were the looks of wonder and excitement on the kids's faces...
1 comment:
I wish I could have been a second grader in that class! Sounds like it was really fun!
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