Teaching the nervous system (brain, spinal cord and neurons/nerve cells)

Science has been going great at our house. We started the science part of our homeschooling experience by reviewing what she already knew about planets, because she felt her school didn't focus enough on the subject. I shared a few fun videos I had found online, she colored some handouts, we learned facts about each planet in our solar system, and finally, Isabella did a short report on her favorite planet, Neptune. If it wasn't for the pandemic, we would have driven to the Air & Space Museum in DC. Unfortunately, we will have to table that field trip for another day (month? next year?)

After "Planets," we moved onto learning about cell structures (animal and plant cells). I continued the unit with having her label the parts of a cell, complete some worksheets, and then complete a short 8-question quiz that I found online that asked questions regarding to the functions of each part of a cell. She passed it with 100% accuracy so I knew it was time to move on.

Isabella has been wanting to learn about the brain since we decided to homeschool her. I told her we needed to first go through the rest of her 5th grade curriculum before introducing her to the nervous system. But now that she had mastered the basics of cells, it seemed like a good time to talk about the body, especially since I have also been teaching her Health "class."

I found a fantastic and short YouTube video that helps kids understand what part of the brain does what. I liked that it was a hands-on video, and Isabella was able to learn the concepts pretty quickly. I had traced the above picture of the brain diagram the night before, so I had Isabella label each part on the picture, and then write one fact or detail about each lobe.

After dinner, I made a quick power point presentation on the spinal cord using information I found on Google and Spinal Cord Lesson for Kids. I'll be sharing the power point with her tomorrow morning before my staff meeting (yes, I am working remotely while home schooling). After my power point (and hopefully before my meeting), I will show her how she can make a replica of a spinal cord using an egg carton. Once that is done, I would like to review the basics of neuron function using some colored playdoh and some other activities I found on this science homeschooling blog.

Once the basic overview of the nervous system is completed (brain, spinal cord and nerves), I am planning to return to the brain diagram and focus on each lobe with Isabella. I came across a really resourceful homeschooling blog when I was looking for a printable of The Stroop Effect. For those of you who aren't familiar with The Stroop Effect, I invite you to read the words below, and when you are done, go back and say the color you see instead of the word:

Basically, The Stroop Effect causes two conflicting signals to occur in the anterior cingulate region of the brain (between the right and left halves of the frontal portion of the brain). The Stroop Effect is a great way to show how the brain processes words and colors differently.

In any case, during my search for the printable, I came across the resourceful homeschooling blog that I linked above. The author shared several other activities that I am now planning to do to demonstrate different functions of the brain and go into more details in regards to each lobe and the neurons.

I am looking forward to some fun activities for Isabella to do!

Update: Here is Isabella's completed replica! (and we finished before my staff meeting started!)