Grades K–2 · Organisms
How do our senses help us notice things?
A ringing bell can catch your attention even when you are looking the other way. Your ears bring sound information to your brain. Your eyes bring clues about things you can see, and your skin brings clues about things you touch. Each sense gives a different kind of information.
When a bell rings, its sound travels through the air to an ear. Small parts inside the ear change the arriving sound into nerve messages. These messages travel to the brain. They help a person notice the sound and recognize what it might be.
The Bell, Ears and Response are joined by arrows. They connect the sound clue with the body part that receives it and a possible response afterward.
In the diagramNotice something, then respondBellEarsResponseTurn towardthe sound
Noticing the bell may be followed by turning toward it. The incoming sound is a clue about the world; turning is something the body can do after receiving that clue. People use different senses and supports to notice their surroundings. A sound, a sight or a touch can help connect what is happening nearby with what someone does next.
About this explanation
Starting knowledge: Match a pictured signal with a possible response.
Sources
- Next Generation Science Standards — Grade 1: external parts and responses to information
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders — Touch glossary
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders — How Do We Hear?