A facilitator holds a bottle while a learner wafts a scent to her nose

Senses

Hands on activities related to the senses - vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. The sensing organs associated with each sense send information to the brain to help us understand and perceive the world around us.

Smell

A facilitator adds scented oils into deflated balloons

Exploring Size - Smelly Balloons

In this activity learners use their sense of smell to explore the world on the nanoscale and learn that we can smell some things that are too small to see.

Chemistry Makes Scents

In this activity, learners will use their nose to explore the differences between chemicals with similar structures and use large molecule models to visualize the structural differences.

Exploring Size - Scented Solutions

In this activity, learners sniff a series of diluted scent solutions to discover they can smell nano-sized particles they can't see.

What’s Nano About Chocolate?

In this 30-second video, viewers quickly learn about nanosized particles and the sense of smell.

Learner with safety goggles smelling a balloon with scent molecules

Getting a Sense of Smell

In this O Wow Moments video, Mr. O explores how our sense of smell works.

Taste

Participants interact with cutouts that have information on them

Food Activities

Food is a great way to connect relevance of STEM content to our lives. Activities explore the science of cooking and preparing food, some of the societal choices about how we grow and process food. Activities can be incorporated into events that involve cooking an eating, food festivals, and annual celebrations like Halloween and Valentine's Day.

NanoDays Nano Food activity components including sign, guides, and activity materials.

Exploring Products - Nano Food

In this activity, learners explore how nanotechnology may be used in food products.

Gum and Chocolate

In this activity, learners practice observation and prediction skills as they experience an interesting chemical reaction in their mouths by chewing chocolate and gum at the same time.

Hearing

Horton Hears a Who! Storytime

In this activity, learners make paper elephant ears to wear and listen to "Horton Hears a Who!" by Dr. Seuss before exploring scent molecules.

Horton Senses Something Small

In this activity, young learners listen to the Dr. Seuss book "Horton Hears a Who", they look at small things using lenses and use their sense of smell to detect things that are too small to see.

While sitting at a table, one child points a small transmitter at a vacuum-seal container that has a key finder inside, and another child holds a smartphone up to the other side of the container.

Radio Explorers: Messages from Space

Learners investigate the differences between sound and radio waves in a partial vacuum.

Vision

Polarized Light activity with hands holding paper and polarizing tape materials up to the window

Light Activities

A compilation of public engagement activities that explore light visible to our eyes and other wavelengths on the electromagnetic spectrum.

Girl looking at objects in a beaker filled with liquid that appear to be invisible

Exploring Properties - Invisibility

In this activity, learners investigate how glass objects can be "hidden" in some liquids through refraction.

A photoshopped image of people wearing invisibility cloaks hiding everything but their legs

Invisibility Cloak video

In this 4-min video the idea of invisibility cloaks is comedically explored.

Components in NanoDays sunblock activity including sunscreen and black paper.

Invisible Sunblock

In this activity, learners compare nano and non-nano sunblock products to discover the effect of particle size on visibility.

Exploring Tools - Transmission Electron Microscopes

In this activity, learners use a model of a transmission electron microscope to image an object by looking at its shadow.

Touch

Exploring Tools - Mystery Shapes

In this activity, learners use their sense of touch to investigate hidden objects.

Facilitator demonstrates a magnetic field with a small model of Earth

Exploring the Solar System: Magnetic Fields

In this activity, learners use magnets and metal items to learn about magnetic fields of the Earth, the Sun, and other objects in the universe.

Image of the green Small Feel Nano magnet sheets

Exploring Tools - Special Microscopes

In this activity, learners use a flexible magnet as a model for a scanning probe microscope.

Is sensing uniquely human?

cards showing human attributes and robot jobs

What Makes Us Human

Explore what it means to be human and how humanlike machines might become.

Touch

Tactile Books and Models for Visually Impaired Visitors

Child using the Braille book, called "Getting a Feel for Eclipses," features graphics that teach users about the interaction and alignment of the sun with the moon and Earth

NISE Network strives to share STEM public engagement resources designed to for all audiences, including blind and visually impaired participants. For more information about how NISE Network products are designed with an inclusive audiences approach using Universal Design principles, visit https://www.nisenet.org/Audiences.

Strategies and Best Practices

NISE Network Tips for Accessibility, Inclusion, and Engagement in Museums and Planetariums
Everyone’s Universe by Noreen Grice http://www.youcandoastronomy.com/everunivnew.html
Universal Design Guidelines and strategies for creating accessible and successful learning and social experiences for multiple and diverse public audiences with the NISE Network. https://www.nisenet.org/catalog/universal-design-guidelines-programs
https://www.nisenet.org/catalog/universal-design-guidelines-exhibits

Earth & Space Tactile Books

NASA SSERVI Tactile and Braille Books https://sservi.nasa.gov/books/
- Getting a Feel for Lunar Crates: Apollo 50th Commemorative Edition tactile book
- Mars Exploration tactile book
- A Tactile Guide to the Solar System tactile book
Touch the Stars tactile book http://www.youcandoastronomy.com/bookstars.htm

NASA 3D Printing Resources

NASA 3D printing and 3D model resources: https://nasa3d.arc.nasa.gov/models
Mars
- 3D printable Mars models: https://nasa3d.arc.nasa.gov/search/mars
- Custom 3D print files can be generated using the NASA Mars Trek: https://trek.nasa.gov/mars/
  Users can draw bounding boxes around any areas of interest to generate output files for 3D printing of desired surface features, instructions: https://trek.nasa.gov (choose "3D printing" from menu at the bottom of the screen)
Moon
- 3D Printed image of the Lunar South Pole https://www.nasa.gov/specials/apollo50th/media.html
- 3D printable lunar models including Apollo landing sites: https://nasa3d.arc.nasa.gov/search/lunar
- Custom 3D print files can be generated using the NASA Moon Trek: https://trek.nasa.gov/moon/
  Users can draw bounding boxes around any areas of interest to generate output files for 3D printing of desired surface features, instructions: https://trek.nasa.gov (choose "3D printing" from menu at the bottom of the screen)
More 3D printing resources
- Smithsonian 3D Digitization (https://3d.si.edu)
- Using TouchSee for 3D printed Braille (https://touchsee.me)