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Senses Showdown #1: The Touch Challenge

Explore the sense of touch by attempting a variety of interactive, hands-on STEM experiments, activities or games.
Michael Barr, M.Ed
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:
(305)
Class

What's included

1 live meeting
50 mins in-class hours

Class Experience

*If you are interested in enrolling in all 4 of the Senses Showdown classes, I recommend looking at my new class listing, "Showdown Series - The 5 Senses Challenge." This is a multi-day class held over 4 weeks (covering all four sense showdowns) on the same day and time each week.

*Also, I currently teach 9 Showdown classes (5 on forces and 4 on your senses) and I am working on 3 more. If you are interested in enrolling in the entire Showdown series, I recommend looking at my new class listing, "The Complete Showdown Series: You vs. Science." In this on-going class (meeting the same day and time each week), I will teach each Showdown class one week at a time until all classes in the series have been taught. 

Senses Showdown Series - Sense of Touch - Class #1

This class is the first in a series of senses showdowns. Students are welcome to take a class in the STEM Senses Showdown series in any order. This class focuses on how our sense of touch works, focusing on the structures and function of our nervous system.

After meeting and greeting everyone, I will begin by reviewing how our sense of touch is important to our interaction with the environment. We will discuss in detail the structures in our body (the nervous system and brain) responsible for our sense of touch.  We will also explore amazing facts to help build students' appreciation for our intricate sense of touch. I will connect with the students' prior knowledge about senses through the use of real-life examples, images and video clips.

Following this, I will explain a series of interactive challenges (mini-games) designed to test the students' understanding of the sense of touch. Students will use their sense of touch in a variety of situations using different tools and materials.

After each explanation, I will ask the students to attempt the challenge on their own. Students will then report back about their experiences. This will be followed by a discussion on how the sense of touch effected the challenges.

*Please check out the materials needed for our challenges. The list is located under "Supply List" further down on this course description page. Students will need to have the materials ready before class starts. This will give them more time to experiment with each challenge during class.

In addition, I will share additional "bonus" challenges and encourage students to attempt these alone or with their family after class ends.

Each student will receive a written list of all completed challenges as well as the "bonus" challenges.

Learning Goals

Students will improve their understanding of the sense of touch through interactive experiments and discussion about the role it plays in our daily lives.
learning goal

Other Details

Supply List
1. 2 pencils (sharpened)
2. a partner (parent, sibling, etc. for a couple of challenges)
3. ruler (at least 12" or 30 cm long)
4. 2 identical containers that you can fit your hands in - up to (at least) your wrists (boxes, bowls, paper bags, etc.)
5. 2 identical coins (any type)
6. 2 large paper clips (if you don't have paper clips, you can substitute 2 identical items similar in size to a large paper clip (large bottle cap, etc.))
7. 2 small paper clips (if you don't have paper clips, you can substitute 2 identical items similar in size to a small paper clip (small legos, etc.))
8. 2 pieces of paper (8.5x11)
9. 3 plastic cups
10. water (you can go to a sink for this during the challenge)
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined April, 2020
5.0
305reviews
Profile
Teacher expertise and credentials
Master's Degree in Education from Saginaw Valley State University
I used these challenges throughout my teaching career. The students were excited to do the challenges and this helped them to retain the concepts we discussed in class.

Reviews

Live One-Time Class
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$14

per class

Meets once
50 min
Completed by 15 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 7-11
2-7 learners per class

This class is no longer offered
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