Steve Jones City of Medicine Academy Durham, NC Lesson plan for the Brain Biopsychology unit ThisplanaddressesthefollowingcontentstandardsfromtheNationalStandardsfor
HighSchoolPsychologyCurricula:
Studentsareableto(performancestandards):
o Differentiatebetweenthestructuresandfunctionsofthevarious
partsofthecentralnervoussystem o Describelateralizationofbrainfunctions o Discussthemechanismsandtheimportanceofplasticityofthe
nervoussystem
o Describeadvancesmadeinneuroscience
DAY ONE of a two‐day introduction to the brain Introwithcurrentevents
Studentswillhavetakennotesonbrainpartsandfunctionsfromassignedpagesintheirtextbook.The
classisintroducedwithaPowerPointslidethatfeaturesbrain‐relatedstoriesthatarecurrentlyinthe
news.Theobjectiveistointroducestudentstomodernresearchtopics,tomakeconnectionstocurrent
eventsandtherealworld,andtohelpthembegintohaveconversationsabouttheroleofthebraininour
everydaylives.Hereisanexampleoftheslidefrom2016,whichreferencesfootballandCTE,leadin
drinkingwater,andhowsolitaryisolationaffectsthebrain.
Reviewofbrainpartsandfunctionsfromnotes
Studentswillhavereadandtakennotesaboutbrainpartsandfunctionsfromtheirtextbookintheir
homeworkthepreviousnight.Wewilltakeafewmomentsnowforgeneralclarificationiftheyhave
questionsandtoclearupanymisconceptionstheymayhaveaboutbrainfunctions.
BrainmnemonicsfromMichaelBritt
Iliketousecognitivetechniquesthroughoutthecourse,sotoaidstudentsinrecallingsomanyvarious
brainpartsandfunctionsIusetheBrainMnemonicspacketcreatedbyMichaelBrittof
www.thepsychfiles.com.Ipairstudentstogetherandgivethem10‐15minutestousethemnemonics,
followedbyabrieforalreviewthatIleadbasedonthemnemonics.Wealsotalkattheendaboutwhat
makesthesemnemonicssopowerful(Brittuseshumorandvividimagery,whichmakeforveryeffective
mnemonics).
PhineasGage–fromastoryoflosstooneofreinvention
ForyearsIhaveusedthevideoclipoftherecreationofPhineasGage’saccidentfromtheTVseriesThe
Brain,andIstillcontinuetouseitwithsomecaveats.Thevideo(foundat
https://www.learner.org/resources/series142.html,episode25)doesagreatjobofportrayingthe
accident,butleavesstudentswiththeimpressionthat“GagewasnolongerGage.”Ithensharewiththem
moreofthestorythatwasrevealedbypsychologyMalcolmMacmillaninhis2000bookAnOddKindof
Fame:StoriesofPhineasGage.(MoreinformationonMacmillan’ssitehere:
https://www.uakron.edu/gage/)Intheinterestoftime,Ishowthemthefollowingtwoslidesthat
updatethestoryofGage’slifeinthe12yearsthatelapsebetweenhisaccidentandhisdeath.Ithen
discusswiththestudentshowthestoryofPhineasGagecanbereframednotasastoryofloss–where
Gageisavictimofhisdamagedbrain–toastoryofreinvention–wherebecauseofhisbrain’splasticity
Gageisabletolearnnewskills,liveinanothercountry,speakanotherlanguage,andgenerallylivea
decentlifeuntilthisdeath.
Asanalternativeassignment,IwillassignthisexcellentarticlefromSamKeanonPhineasGagefor
studentswhowantmoreinformation:
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2014/05/phineas_gage_neuroscience_case_t
rue_story_of_famous_frontal_lobe_patient.html
BrainValentines
Becauseofthewaymyonesemestercourseisorganized,thebiopsychologyunithappensaround
Valentine’sDay.Asawaytocelebratethedayandtoserveasanexitticket,Ihavestudentsrandomly
drawabrainpart,andthencreateaValentine’scard(ofsomesort)thatshowstheyunderstandtheir
part’sfunction.Studentstendtohavefunwiththis!Thebriefdirectionsarebelow,followedbysome
examples.
BrainValentines
1)YourtaskistocreateavalentineforapartoftheBRAINwehavestudied.
2)Ithastobeanactualphysicalthing–notadigitalvalentine.You’rewelcometousethecomputerto
makeit,butitmustbeprintedoutandhandedin.
3)Ithastobeinthestyleofavalentinecard.(Feelfreetosearchforimagesonlinetoinspireyou,but
yourvalentinemustbeyourowncreation.)
4)Ithastoincorporatethebrainpartcorrectly–ifyouweretousethehippocampus,forexample,you
shouldbeusingtheideaof“memory”inyourvalentine.
5)Itshould“looklikeavalentine”–turninginasolidblackrectangle,orsomepencilscribbledonlined
notebookpaper,won’tcutit.(Becreativeand/orfunnyand/orsweetand/orcornyand/orromantic!)
Optionalhomeworkassignment:brainhats
BecausemyAPPsychologyclassisonesemester,andthisunitiscoveredinFebruary,wealmostalways
missatleastadayortwoduringthisunit.Forthepastseveralyears,then,Ihavegivenstudentsaprinted
brainhatduringthefirstpartoftheunitandencouragethemtotakethemhome,drawonthem,color
them,andinasenseusethemasa“cheatsheet”ontheupcomingtest.Ifwedoloseadayortwo,thenthe
studentsareallowedtousetheirbrainhatonthetest,butonlyifit’scolorfulanditisworninclassprior
tothetest.Belowisanimagefromafewyearsagoofstudentsinoneclasswearingtheirhatsduringthe
test.Thebestpart,ofcourse,isthemanystudentswhohavecreatedthehat,wearitduringthetest,yet
nevertakeitofftouseitasacheatsheet–“Hey,Mr.Jones,Ididn’tevenuseit!”theysay,andIsmile.
DAY TWO of a two‐day introduction to the brain “Cupid’sDisease”
Webegintheseconddaywithanyquestionstheymayhaveaboutthebrain,thengointoareadingofthe
story“Cupid’sDisease”fromTheManWhoMistookHisWifeForaHatbyDr.OliverSacks.Thisisa
fascinatingstoryformystudentsbecauseitviolatestheirexpectationsaboutolderpeopleandsexual
activity,andtheyareintriguedbytheideathatalongdormantviruscancausethesefeelings.Itleadstoa
nicediscussionformeabouthowtheconnectionsbetweenourbodiesandourbrains.“Cupid’sDisease”
canalsoberetrievedfromhere:https://cnaenglish.wikispaces.com/file/view/Cupid's+Disease.pdf
“Themysteriousworkingsoftheadolescentbrain”
http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_jayne_blakemore_the_mysterious_workings_of_the_adolescent_brain
BecauseIhavetheonesemester,Ioftenchooseactivitiesthatcanreachintomorethanoneunit,andthis
TEDTalkbypsychologistSarah‐JayneBlakemoredoesthisbrilliantly.Asaworkingresearcher,
Blakemoregivesagreattalkaboutherlab’sworkandthewaytheytrytodeterminehowadultsand
adolescentsthinkdifferently.Butshealsoexplainsthedevelopmentoftheconceptofadolescence,the
malleabilityoftheteenagebrain,andthenotionthatthisperiodshouldbeseenasone“foreducationand
socialdevelopment,”andnotasatimetostigmatizeteensforpoorbehavior.OneassignmentI’veused
withthisvideo(asanquizgrade,withstudentsusingnotestheytookduringthevideo)isbelow:
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
APPsych“Themysteriousworkingsoftheadolescentbrain”‐TEDTalkbySarah‐JayneBlakemore
1)AccordingtoBlakemorewehaveamuchbettersenseofwhatbrainsarelikeinthelastdecadeorsobecauseofadvancesin
brainimagingtechnology.Whattypeofbrainimagingtechnologydidshespecificallyreferto?
2)Dr.Blakemorefocusedprimarilyononespecificpartofthebrain.Drawasmallimageofabrain,andthenshadeinthepart
thatshe’stalkingabout.Besuretonameit.(Hint:thewordlobeisnotintheanswer.)
3)Shesaysthepart(in#2)isinvolvedin“awholerangofcognitivefunctions,”andthenshelistsnineexamples.Listanytwo
ofthenineexamplessheprovides.
4)Dr.Blakemoredescribeshowthevolumeofgraymatterinthebrain“increasesduringchildhood[and]peaksinearly
adolescence.”Afterthat,shesaid,“there'sasignificantdeclineingraymattervolumeinprefrontalcortex.”Whatisthename
forthis“eliminationofunwantedsynapses”?
5)Whatsportdidshetalkaboutwhensheshowedaphotoofplayerandfansreactionsduringagame?
Thenextfewquestionsareaboutthe“shelves”experiment.Blakemore’steamhadtwodifferentversionsofthis
experiment:inoneyouweretofollowtheinstructionsofthedirector(whowasbehindtheshelves)andintheother
therewasnodirector.Inthelattergrouptheparticipantswerejusttoldtoignoreobjectswiththedarkgray
background.
6)Whatwastheexperimentalgroupandcontrolgroupinthisexperiment?
7)Whatwastheindependentvariable? 8)Whatwasthedependentvariable?
“Betweenlatechildhoodandmid‐adolescence,there'san
improvement,inotherwordsareductionoferrors,inbothof
thesetrials,inbothoftheseconditions.Butit'swhenyou
comparethelasttwogroups,themid‐adolescentgroupandthe
adultgroupwherethingsgetreallyinteresting,becausethere,
thereisnocontinuedimprovementintheno‐directorcondition.
Inotherwords,everythingyouneedtodoinordertoremember
theruleandapplyitseemstobefullydevelopedbymid‐
adolescence,whereasincontrast,ifyoulookatthelasttwogray
bars,there'sstillasignificantimprovementinthedirector
conditionbetweenmid‐adolescenceandadulthood;andwhat
thismeansis..._______”
9)Canyouexplain(inonesentence)whatshemeansaboutwhatadolescentsarestillnotquitegoodat?
10)Shetoldastoryaboutafriendwhohaddaughters.Whentheywereyounghewoulddosomethinganditwouldimprove
theirbehavior,butwhentheybecameadolescents,thesamething“becameathreat.”Whatwasthedaddoing?
11)Nametheauthorshequotedwhodescribedadolescentbehaviorin“TheWinter’sTale.”
12)Whatareaofthebraingoesintheblanksbelow?(Yes,it’stwowords.)
“Sothe__________________isrightdeepinsidethebrain,andit'sinvolvedinthingslikeemotionprocessingandreward
processing.Itgivesyoutherewardingfeelingoutofdoingfunthings,includingtakingrisks.Itgivesyouthekickoutoftaking
risks.Andthisregion,theregionswithinthe__________________,havebeenfoundtobehypersensitivetotherewardingfeelingof
risk‐takinginadolescentscomparedwithadults…
13)“Andthat'sstillthecaseformany,manyteenagersaroundtheworldtoday.Fortypercentofteenagersdon'thaveaccessto
secondary____________.Andyet,thisisaperiodoflifewherethebrainisparticularlyadaptableandmalleable.It'safantastic
opportunityforlearningandcreativity.”Whatgoesintheblank?
14)“Sowhat'ssometimesseenastheproblemwithadolescents—heightenedrisk‐taking,poorimpulsecontrol,self‐
consciousness—shouldn'tbestigmatized.Itactuallyreflectschangesinthebrainthatprovideanexcellentopportunityfor
educationandsocialdevelopment.”Whatdoesshemeanherebystigmatized?
“Mr.SplitBrainy”
Studentsoftenstrugglewithunderstandingwhatasplit‐brainpatientcansayortouch(withaspecific
hand),soatthistimestudentsgoinpairstotheactivity“Mr.SplitBrainy.”CreatedbytheNobel
organization(inhonorofRogerSperry’s1981NobelPrize),thisisafunandcreativewaytogetstudents
tothinkthroughthepossibleoutcomesforasplit‐brainpatient.Whilesomestudentsmayprefertodo
thisindependently,Ipreferhavingthemdothisassignmentinpairssotheycantalkthroughthe
questionsthatariseastheyplaytheactivity.TheURLis:
http://www.nobelprize.org/educational/medicine/split‐brain/
TED‐EDBrainVideos/jigsaw
Iftimepermits,IassignstudentstowatchoneoffourTED‐EDvideosaboutthebrain(below).EachTED‐
EDvideoisbetween4‐5minutes,iscreativelydepicted,andcontainsbothmultiplechoiceandshort
answerquestions.Studentsineachgroupwatchthevideo,takenotes,andselecttwoofthemultiple‐
choicequestionstheyfeelarethebest.Studentsthenrotategroups,sothateachgroupcontainsmembers
oftwovideos(A/BandC/Dthefirsttime,thenA/CB/D,finallyA/DB/C).Byusingthejigsawmethod,
eachstudentisresponsibleforsharingcompleteinformationaboutthefullvideotheywatched,andthey
gettolearnaboutthreeotherstheydidn’twatch.Theeightmultiplechoicequestionscanthenbe
reviewed(individually,ingroups,orasaclass)tocheckforunderstanding.
*A)Whatpercentageofyourbraindoyouuse?‐RichardE.Cytowic
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what‐percentage‐of‐your‐brain‐do‐you‐use‐richard‐e‐cytowic
*B)Whathappenswhenyouremovethehippocampus?
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what‐happens‐when‐you‐remove‐the‐hippocampus‐sam‐kean
*C)Howsugaraffectsthebrain
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how‐sugar‐affects‐the‐brain‐nicole‐avena
*D)Howstressaffectsyourbrain
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how‐stress‐affects‐your‐brain‐madhumita‐murgia
Endofdaytwovideo:Beautiful3‐DBrainScansShowEverySynapse
Ishowthisfiveminutevideoattheendofthebrainunitfortworeasons.First,Ilikeformystudentstobe
awedbythetechnologythatallowsustoseemoredetailsabouttheinteriorofthebrain.Butsecond,I
lovethesecommentsbyHarvard’sJeffLicthmanabouthowmuchweknowaboutthebrain.Hesays
“Understandingthateverythingweneededtoknowaboutthebrainisonemilelong,howfarhavewe
walked?”Istophereandhavemystudentsturntotheirneighborandeachmakeaguess.Ithenresume
thevideo,andLicthmangivestheanswer:“Ithinkaboutthreeinches.”Ithenhavethestudentstalkto
theirneighboragainaboutthisclaim,andthenwehaveabriefdiscussionasawholeclass.Whatare
somethingswefeellikeweknow,andwhataretheareaswherewedon’tknowasmuch?Wethen
continuethevideoandseehowtheseresearchersareexploringthebrainandusingtechnologytoreveal
thestructureandfunctionofthebrain.Thevideoisfoundhere:
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/magazine/ngm‐3d‐brain
TheZombieMenuProject
Icreatedthissimpleprojectseveralyearsagoandstillliketouseitwithmystudentsbecause‐zombies!
Thesimpledirectionsarepostedbelow:
Restaurantforzombies(new!)
Forthisoptionyouwillneedtodesignamenuforarestaurantforzombies.Asyouknow,zombiesarefondofeatingbrains,
andyourgoalistocreatesevenmouth‐wateringbraindishesforthemtoenjoy.Yourmenumustbeinprintedformwhenitis
submitted,butyoucaneitherdesignitdigitallyorbyhand.
Youwillneedtoshowapagefromyourrestaurant’smenuthatshowsthesevendishes.Thenameofyourrestaurantshould
beprominentonthemenupageandthenameoftherestaurantmustbecreative–thinkofanamethatwouldbeattractiveto
zombies.Eachofyoursevendishesmustreflectadifferentpartofthebrainandbecreativelynamed:why,forexample,does
OutbackcallitschickendishAliceSpringsChicken?
Besurethenamematchesthefunctionofthebrainpartaswell.Eachofthesevendishesmustincludesomethingaboutthe
functionofthatpart,andwillneedtobedescribedinanattractivewaysothatazombiewilllookforwardtothedish–thatis,
don’tjustmentionthatyouareservingpituitarylobe,butperhaps“grilledpituitarythatgrowsinyourplateoverabedof
sautéedjasminerice.”Youneedtohavepicturesofthreeofthedishesaswell.
Rubric
Spoton!
Somewhat….
Um,no.
Isthenamecreativeand
(3)
(2‐1)
(0)
appropriateforazombie
brainrestaurant?(3)
Dothedishnamesand
(20‐18)
(17‐14)
(13‐0)
descriptionsreflectthatyou
knowthefunctionofeachof
thesevenbrainparts?(28)
Dothethreedishesthatare
(20‐18)
(17‐14)
(13‐0)
pictureddepictthedishes
well?(12)
Isyourzombiemenu
(7)
(6‐4)
(3‐0)
colorfulandneat?(7)