Weighing 3 pounds and comprises 60% fat, the brain, on average, is 2% of the human body’s weight. It’s composed of the cerebellum, the brainstem, and the cerebrum. It controls speech, memory, thoughts, movement, and function of the body’s organs.
Parts of the Brain
The brain comprises three distinct parts the
- Cerebrum,
- Cerebellum
- Brainstem
The Cerebrum
The cerebrum is the biggest part of the brain and it is divided into the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere. It’s the most significant part of the brain and is responsible for speech, learning, and movement.
The cerebral cortex is a thin layer that covers the cerebrum and is referred to as gray matter.
The cerebellum
The cerebellum is at the back of the brain controls balance and movement.
It ensures that your muscles are moving in the correct direction and also responsible for posture and balance.
This part of the brain gets all of the messages from the nerves and helps to figure out what to do with them. Riding a skateboard uses the cerebellum part of the brain.
The brainstem
The brain stem controls messages from the brain to other body functions such as blood pressure, heart rate, breathing and also responsible for consciousness and whether you are asleep or awake
Lobes Of The Brain And Their Functions
The brain is made up of different lobes,
- The frontal lobe
- The parietal lobe
- The occipital lobe
- The temporal lobe
The Frontal Lobe
The brain’s frontal lobe is found inside the frontal bone of the skull and it helps with different functions such as
- Reasoning
- Decision making
- Emotions
- Personality traits
- Memory functions
The Parietal Lobe
The parietal lobe is found inside the parietal bone of the skull and its functions include helping with sensory information and sensations
- Handwriting
- Temperature and touch
- Interpret words and language
- Interpret signals from our ears and eyes
The Occipital Lobe
The occipital lobe is located in the occipital bone of the skull and it has a function of interpreting, and processing information.
- Helps with vision and visual stimuli
- Helpful for light, color, and movement
The Temporal Lobe
The temporal lobe is located on the sides of the brain, in the temporal bone of the skull.
The temporal lobe helps with language, with organization,
- Memory
- Memory formation
- Comprehension
- Hearing
- Organization
- Understanding language
Brain Facts for Kids:
- The brain uses 20% of the body’s energy.
- The side that your brain functions depend on if you are left or right-handed.
- People that are right-handed use the left side of the brain for language or numbers.
- People that are right-handed use the right side of the brain for artistic functions.
- People that are left-handed use the right side of the brain for language or numbers.
- People that are left-handed use the left side of the brain for artistic functions.
- The thalamus is located right in the center of the brain.
- Some doctors and scientists say that the brain has a fifth lobe, and this is called the Insula. It is found inside the temporal lobe.
Inside the Brain
There are some technical terms for the brain. The cerebral has different features such as the gyri, sulci, and fissures.
The gyri are the elevated part of the brain that looks liked ridges and that winds around the brain. The sulci are small groves that help to divide the gyri.
The central sulcus divides the parietal lobe and the frontal lobe from one another. Fissures are deep grooves in the brain that divide different regions or lobes of the brain.
The longitudinal fissures divide the two cerebral hemispheres and the transverse fissure separates the cerebellum from the cerebrum.
The sylvian or lateral fissure divides the temporal lobe from the frontal lobe and from the parietal lobe.
Learning
An important part of learning about the brain is learning about the brain stem, also called the medulla.
The brain stem connects the brain to the spinal cord, and this helps us to do involuntary movement such as breathing, digesting food and making sure that the heart beats.
The brain is responsible for memory and our body has short term and long-term memory.
Short term memory helps us to remember things that we learned a little while ago and without practicing it.
Long-term Memory
The long-term memory allows us to remember things from long ago.
We use the brain to help us think and all of our sense use the brain to help us experience what is going on in our world.
Our brain gives us emotions, helps us to solve problems, allows us to worry and to dream and allows us to control our bodies.
The brain is part of the nervous system and works with the spinal cord to help make up the central nervous system.
The brain has nerves that go all through the body and connect to the brain, sending signals to let the brain know what it should tell the body to do.
What else does the Brian Do?
The brain helps to control the nerves and the muscles to get our bodies moving.
In order for the brain to work, it needs energy. Energy is supplied to the brain by the blood vessels.
When the blood vessels take blood to the brain, the brain gains energy.
There are two halves of the brain. The nerves in the brain cross so the nerves on the right side of the brain control the left side of the body and the nerves on the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body.
What Did You Learn?
- What system is the brain a part of? The brain is part of the nervous system that works with the spinal cord to make our body work.
- The brain is divided into how many different lobes? The brain is divided into four lobes, the frontal, temporal, occipital and parietal lobes. Each lobe has a different job.
- What color is the brain? The brain is a gray looking, wrinkled mass.
- What part of the brain is the biggest part? The biggest part of the brain is the cerebrum.
- What part of the brain helps us with movement? The cerebellum part of the brain helps the body with movement.
- What part of the brain helps to control functions like breathing and digesting food? The brain stem, also called the medulla helps to control involuntary bodily functions.
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