THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

S T E M

Teacher Guidelines ▶ pages 1 – 2

4-6
Instructional Pages ▶ pages 3 – 5
Activity Page ▶ page 6
Practice Page ▶ pages 7 – 8
GRADE Homework Page
Answer Key
▶
▶
page 9
page 10
 Classroom Procedure:
1. Introduce the lesson by asking students to talk to a
partner about the phrase ‘getting on my nerves.’ Then,
have pairs of students share with the class. Explain that
today they will be learning about the nervous system.
2. Distribute Nervous System STEM content pages.
3. Distribute the Activity Page. Students should play
Neuron Tag outside. It is best to designate a speci ic
area for students to play within using cones or chalk.
4. Distribute the Practice Page. Students should create
their own models.
5. Distribute the Homework Page.
6. In closing, tell students that a doctor who studies the
nervous system is called a neurologist. Ask students
why looking at the nervous system is important for
doctors to do. What are some of the common nerves in
the human body? What functions do nerves perform?
How do we know the difference between a cold and hot
item? What are some diseases that attack the nervous
system?
*Lessons are aligned to meet the education objectives and goals of
most states. For more information on your state objectives, contact
your local Board of Education or Department of Education in your state.
Lesson Title: Nervous System: A STEM
Activity
Subject: Science
Approximate Grade Level: 4 – 6
Objectives: Students will locate the nervous
system and understand how it functions in
the body. In addition, students will know that
although we study the human systems and
organs as independent systems, they are
interdependent on other systems to function
correctly.
State Educational Standards*
NGSS.MS-LS1-1, NGSS.MS-LS1-2, &
NGSS.MS-LS1-3
Class Sessions (45 minutes):
1-2 Class Sessions
Teaching Materials/Worksheets:
Content Pages (2), Activity Page (1), Practice
Pages (2), Homework Pages (2)
Student Supplies:
• Activity: an outdoor area for students to
run
• Practice: play dough, beads, pipe
cleaners
Prepare Ahead of Time:
Copies of worksheets
Options for Lesson: Instead of using playdough
or clay for the Practice activity, have students
make their models edible using various foods
and candies. Students can then eat their nerves
at the end of the lesson. Research different
diseases when the nervous system is not
functioning at optimal levels. Have students
investigate what can happen when other parts
of the nervous system fail to communicate
correctly. Have a neurological physician come
to the class and talk about it.
1
 Teacher Notes
This lesson introduces students to their own command center – the nervous system. First, they will learn
how signals are sent through nerves and different types of nerves. Then, using their own command
centers, students will run in a game of neuron chain tag and create their own nerve. This lesson will get
students learning on many different levels as they explore their own nervous systems.

2
The Nervous System
A command center is a central place for carrying
out orders and for supervising tasks. And that’s
precisely what your nervous system does. It
oversees and regulates almost everything you
think, do, say, and feel. It controls your movements
and automatic responses to stimuli around you.
It also controls bodily functions like digestion,
breathing, blushing, and even blinking. It affects
every other system in your body and every aspect
of your health such as:

Learning and memory

Balance and coordination

Five senses

Sleeping

Healing

Aging

The nervous system is a massive network of nerves that send electrical signals all over your body through
cells, glands, and muscles. The nerves receive information, then interpret the information and create a
response.

There are three main functions of the nervous system:

1. Keep the body in balance (homeostasis)

2. Send and receive messages about the world around you
3. Control movement
Have you ever seen a picture of the highway system running through a big city? Your nervous system is a
super information highway running throughout your body!

3
The Nervous System
The nervous system is made up of 2 parts:

1. The Central Nervous System (brain and spinal cord)

2. The Peripheral Nervous System (nerves that branch off the spinal cord)
Specialized cells called neurons send electrical signals (messages). The electrical signals travel
throughout your body from your brain to your skin, organs, muscles, and glands and then back again. The
messages give you information about moving your limbs or what sensations you are feeling from stimuli in
your environment.
Another name for a nerve cell is a neuron. Did you know that there are about 100 billion nerves in your
brain? Each neuron has a cell body.
The cell body includes the cell nucleus along with
dendrites and axons, which are unique extensions
of the cell body. Bundles of axons are called nerves,
and they are found throughout the entire body. The
special extensions (axons and dendrites) are how
neurons communicate.

Different types of neurons send different signals.

• Motor neurons – tell muscles to move

• Sensory neurons – activated by information from your senses (light, sound, odor, taste, pressure, and
heat)
• Interneurons – connect the motor and sensory neurons
Other parts of the nervous system control our involuntary processes. These are things like your heartbeat,
breathing, releasing hormones, and even when your pupil opens to let in light.

4
How neurons
communicate:

When a neuron wants to communicate with another neuron, it sends an electrical signal down its axon.
The myelin sheath is a layer that forms around nerves so the electrical impulses can travel quickly and
efficiently along with the nerve cells. If it is damaged, these electrical signals slow down. At the end of
the axon, the signal changes from electrical to a chemical. Special chemicals called neurotransmitters
are released into the gap (the synapse) between the neuron’s axon and the other neuron’s dendrite. The
dendrite converts the chemical signal back to an electrical signal. It travels through the cell body and down
the axon to the next neuron in line. This process continues through thousands and millions of nerve cells.
Sometimes this process gets interrupted and doesn’t work perfectly. When this happens, it creates
different disorders and conditions for people. Diseases, accidents, and toxins can all damage your
nervous system. Even just growing older can damage the nervous system. There are different levels
of damage to the nervous system. Sometimes it cannot send or receive messages, or there could be
numbness in an area of the body, or it might be challenging to move a specific part of the body.
It is important to keep your nervous system healthy because it is the command center of your body.
You can keep it working correctly by eating a healthy diet, avoiding drugs, and managing any medical
conditions you might have with the help of a doctor.

5
 Activity Name __________________________ Date _________

Instructions: Follow the instructions to play the game!

Neuron Chain Tag
• One person starts as ‘It’ – they are the first neuron.
• They try to tag the other players.
• When a person is tagged, they must hold the person’s hand who is ‘It.’
• Together they must tag other players.
• Each player that is tagged joins the neuron chain.
• The game ends when everyone is part of the chain.

6
 Practice Name __________________________ Date _________

Instructions: Using your playdough, pipe cleaners, and beads, create a model of a neuron.
In your model, you must include:
• dendrites
• axon
• nucleus
• cell body
• myelin sheath
• axon terminals
Use different colors for the components!
Here are some examples:

Google Brain Awareness Week to find lots of great activities including a make your own neuron
competition!

7
 Practice Answer Key
Name __________________________ Date _________

Instructions: Using your playdough, pipe cleaners, and beads, create a neuron model. In
your model, you must include:
• dendrites
• axon
• nucleus
• cell body
• myelin sheath
• axon terminals
Answers will vary, but a sample should look like this:
Use different colors for the components!

8
 Homework Name __________________________ Date _________

Instructions: Draw your nervous system and label the parts: Brain, spinal cord, arm nerves,
leg nerves, abdomen nerves, and chest nerves.

9
 Homework Answer Key
Name __________________________ Date _________

Instructions: Draw your nervous system and label the brain, spinal cord, arm nerves, leg
nerves, abdomen nerves, and chest nerves.

Brain

Spinal Cord

Arm Nerves
Chest Nerves

Abdomen Nerves

Leg Nerves

10