Neuroscience at Seabury MS

Neuroscience

Why does the brain have grooves? Why does the cerebellum look like a tree? Why does our heart beat slow when we submerge our face in warm water and increase when we put our hand in ice water?

These are the types of questions middle school students in our Psychology/Neuroscience course are wrestling with. They get to use tools real scientists use to investigate the brain. They dig into the past and make connections with Renaissance Philosophers and Ancient Egyptian mummification practices.  

Some students love memorizing facts and others love illustrating their understanding with their artistic minds. Students engage in hands-on science and then look for new and creative ways to apply their knowledge. Experiences like the ones pictured below challenge them and allow them to use their gifts. 

Students dissecting a mammalian brain to better understand what different parts of the brain do

Observing electric potential of the heart and brain

The Mammalian Diving Impulse triggers the parasympathetic nervous system

Identifying the temporal lobe

Pointing out sulci

Negotiation: Conflict Resolution and Peace Building

In social studies, the students have been researching conflict zones as well as peace-building strategies.

This week, they participated in a negotiation simulation between a parent and a teenage child in Indian Kashmir trying to decide whether to move or stay.

During this activity, students had to assess and analyze their character's bio in order to determine his/her/their position (nonnegotiable) and interests (negotiable). They also had to think outside of the box to determine potential solutions and ways they could work together to build consensus and, eventually, compromise if needed.

No two simulations resulted in the same outcome, which speaks to how many different ways there are to build peace and interpret a situation. Some students made plans to emigrate. Some students made plans to relocate temporarily, some made plans to separate, and some made plans solely aligned with the parent's position, but drawing heavily on the child's interests.

The students reported using the following strategies during the negotiations:

1. Listening to another perspective or point of view
2. Listening carefully to hear what was not really being said
3. Making it clear that a choice needed to be made
4. Using logic to explain their position or understand the other side's position
5. Conceding
6. Compromising
7. Being clear with their language