ScienceMakers Toolkit Manual - The History Makers

Additional Resources
There is an excellent fi lm on programmed cell death called “Death By Design: Where Parallel Worlds Meet”
(1997) by Jean-François Brunet and Peter Friedman.
Wayne Bowen’s Research: http://research.brown.edu/myresearch/Wayne_Bowen
Experiment - Sense of Touch
This lesson was adapted from educational materials developed by the Center for the Advancement of Science
Education at the Museum of Science and Industry.
At A Glance:
What can you feel with your fi ngertips? What textures can you distinguish? This activity is designed to help
students explore their sense of touch by testing different textures and temperatures.
Objectives:
• Students will learn that there are different types of receptors on their skin that make up their sense of
touch.
• Students will be able to make predictions about what will enhance or hinder their dermal receptors.
Advance Preparation:
Part 1: Textures
Create texture boards with different materials for students to explore. These should be a variety of different textures
attached to boards for easy comparison.
Part 2: Temperatures
Prepare a cold material (e.g. an ice cube), and a warm one (e.g. an object left in the sun)
Part 3: Brain Box of Science
Collect various materials with different textures, such as sandpaper,
cotton balls, marbles, different fabrics, etc. Prepare a cardboard box
with openings big enough for a hand to pass through. Place items
with different shapes and textures inside the box.
Materials (per group)
• A variety of materials with different textures (e.g. sandpaper,
cotton balls, aluminum foil, feathers, Velcro, etc.)
• A cardboard box
• Gloves
What You Need To Know:
Your sense of touch originates in the bottom layer of your skin called the dermis. The dermis is fi lled with
many small nerve endings that give you information about the things your body touches. The nerves carry the
information to the spinal cord, which in turn sends signals to the brain where the feeling is registered. Nerve
endings in your skin can tell you the texture of a material and whether it is hot or cold. Nerves can also sense if
something is hurting you.
Above the dermis is the epidermis. Look at the cross-section of the skin. Notice that the pain receptors are closest
to the epidermis, the temperature receptors are second, and the pressure receptors last. The information that
the receptors collect from the outside of the body is passed through nerves to the spinal cord, then to the brain.
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Life Science