Today we are taking a visit to Ingenia’s Otolaryngology Clinic where you will be learning more about how ears work. Otolaryngology is a BIG word that refers to a medical specialty focused on the ears, nose, and throat. For that reason, otolaryngologists are often called “Ears, Nose, and Throat” doctors (or simply “ENT” doctors for short). An ENT doctor needs to know all about how the ears work. These doctors are trained in the medical and surgical treatment of hearing loss, ear infections, balance disorders, ear noise (e.g., tinnitus), nerve pain, and much more. Have you ever had a doctor check your ears or hearing? [pause for student responses]. Has anyone visited an ENT doctor before? [pause for student responses].
ENT doctors need to know about the ears, nose, and throat. Today, you will be learning more about ears as you learn from Ingenia’s ENT doctor. Are you ready to get started learning more about ears?
Today, you will learn even more about how human ears work and how they are similar and/or different from animal ears. Let’s get started!
Script (5 minutes): Today, we are going to learn all about different animal ears. Have you ever imagined what it might be like if you had ears like a dog, cat, or wild animal? How might your life be different if your ears were different? (Pause for student responses) We are going to explore the book What If You Had Animal Ears? by Sandra Markle and imagine how different animal ears might change our abilities and mode of communication.
Book/Video (10 minutes): Read the picture book What If You Had Animal Ears? out loud or play this Youtube video reading the book aloud.
Teacher’s Choice: Choose either the individual Animal Ears cut-and-paste worksheet activity or the full-class activity described below. Each activity focuses on identifying animal ears and matching them to different animals.
Worksheet Activity: Using a cut-and-paste worksheet, students match the animals to their ears. Then, discuss as a group why animals have different ears. Discussion prompts may include:
OR:
Class Activity: As a class, complete and discuss the following quiz game all about animal ears: Can You Identify This Animal By its Ears? (https://www.howstuffworks.com/) Look at each of the animal ears pictured and ask children to guess what animal it is. After you complete the quiz discuss why animals have different ears using one or more of the following prompts:
Students will make various models of animal ears and will test the different ears to determine if ear shape and size affects their hearing.
Script: Animal ears are different from human ears, but they work in similar ways. Just like human ears, animal ears contain an ear drum that vibrates. Animals hear sound through vibration, too. Today, you’ll make your own animal ears and test out how your hearing may change if you had different ears than your own.
*The Exploratorium offers a similar lesson here.
As a class, discuss the results of the Making Animal Ears activity. Give students a chance to share their animal ear models with the class if they would like. Facilitate a class discussion using one or more of the following prompts. Encourage children to think back to testing the ear models when answering:
Challenge students to think beyond the ears found in nature on humans and animals. What other ear shapes might affect your hearing? Have students make and test various new ear shapes using the materials from the Making Animal Ears activity above.
Hearing in Humans Script [2 min]: We have learned a lot about hearing and how different shapes and sizes can affect our hearing. What are some things you have learned about hearing? [pause for student responses]
Sometimes, people and animals need help hearing. When that happens, they might use a technology called a hearing aid. A hearing aid specialist tests your hearing and helps you to get a hearing aid that suits your needs. Let’s learn a little bit more about how hearing aids work!
Video - How Do Hearing Aids Work? [2 min]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxzVyMcmRcs (https://www.youtube.com/@fueladmin6028)
Video - Hearing Aid Specialist Career Video [1 min]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe0JM5NHJy4 (CareerOneStop.org)
Hearing in Animals Script [2 min]: We have been learning a lot about how animals' ears work and how animals can hear. Scientists are even researching how to create hearing aids for animals! More research needs to be done before hearing aids are used for animals and we can’t get them for our dogs and cats yet. But it is common for animals to have their hearing checked, just like people. Let’s take a look at how animals might get their hearing tested!
Video [3 min]- The BAER Hearing Test in Animals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQfsSYedrR0 (American Kennel Club: https://www.akc.org/)
Discuss and Debrief [5 min]: Wrap up the discussion on hearing in humans and animals using one or more of these prompts:
Students can take home their animal ear models to show their family and caregivers. Encourage children to demonstrate for their family or caregivers how their animal ear models work. Family and caregivers can be encouraged to ask children one or more of the following prompts:
