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Sense Organs Facts & Worksheets

The sense organs are the body organs by which humans are able to see, smell, hear, taste, and touch or feel.

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The organs that react to external stimuli by sending impulses to the sensory nervous system are known as sense organs. A sense is a bodily system that an individual employs to experience sensation, which is the process of obtaining information from the environment and responding to stimuli. Although understood the classic five human senses (sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing), it is now accepted that there are many more.

See the fact file below for more information on sense organs, or you can download our 26-page Sense Organs worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Sensory Organs

  • Sense organs are distinct organs that assist us in perceiving our surroundings. They are an essential element of our life and the only way we can sense our surroundings.
  • In reaction to specific physical phenomena, sense organs offer the necessary data for interpretation via multiple organs and a network of nerves. These senses influence our associations and interactions with our surroundings.
  • Our five sensory organs are the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin.
  • These five sense organs comprise receptors that send information to the relevant parts of the nervous system through sensory neurons. The receptors can be divided into two groups: generic and specific receptors, and the former may be found across the body, whereas the latter contains chemoreceptors, photoreceptors, and mechanoreceptors.

Eyes – Sight or Opthalmoception

  • These are our body’s visual sense organs. These are light-sensitive photographs. The color of our eyes varies according to the quantity of melanin in our bodies, and it aids with vision by detecting and concentrating on light pictures.
  • The iris is the pigmented component of the eye that controls the size and width of the pupil, which directly impacts how much light enters the eyes. The vitreous body is located behind the eye’s lens, packed with a gelatinous substance known as vitreous humor. This material shapes the eyeball and conveys light to the retina at the very back of the eyeball.
  • Photoreceptors, which catch the light, are found in the retina. Two types of cells present conduct unique roles, and Rod and Cones are their names.
  • Rods: These low-light sensors are positioned at the margins of the retina and are also helpful for peripheral vision.
  • Cones: These retinal cells perceive tiny details and color best under intense light. Cones are classified into three categories based on their ability to detect three primary light colors: blue, red, and green. Color blindness is typically caused by the absence of any of these types of cones.

Ears – Hearing or Audioception

  • Our ears are our auditory sense organs. They help with sound perception. 
  • Our auditory system senses air vibrations and utilizes this information to generate sound. It is referred to as hearing or audio captioning.
  • The ears are separated into the outer, inner, and middle. Because all sounds are fundamentally vibrations, the outer ear directs these vibrations into the ear canal, where the brain converts them into meaningful sounds.
  • Aside from hearing, this sense is also vital for bodily balance or equilibrium.

Tongue – Taste or Gustaoception

  • The tongue aids in the perception of distinct tastes and flavors. Taste buds are found between the papillae on the tongue and aid in detecting various flavors.
  • Often you can’t taste it if you can’t smell it. Gustaoception is another synonym for a tas sensation. Chemoreceptors on the tongue work the same way as those in the nasal cavity.
  • On the other hand, the chemoreceptors in the nose can sense any scent, whereas there are four specific types of taste buds, each of which can detect different tastes, such as sweet, sourness, bitterness, and saltiness.

Nose – Smell or Olfalcoception

  • The nose serves as an olfactory organ; our olfactory system aids us in detecting distinct odors. This organ also helps with our perception of taste.
  • Olfaction is another phrase for the sense of smell.
  • The top of the nasal cavity is lined with olfactory cells. Olfactory cells have cilia that protrude into the nasal cavity on one end and olfactory nerve fibers on the other.
  • The oxygen reaches the nasal cavity as one breathes in. Olfactory cells are chemoreceptors, meaning they have protein receptors that can sense small chemical changes.
  • These molecules adhere to the cilia, which transmit a nerve impulse to the brain, and the brain subsequently translates these impulses into a meaningful fragrance.
  • The body creates mucus during a cold, which limits the perception of smell; this is why the food we consume tastes bland.

Skin – Touch or Tactioception

  • The biggest organ in our body is the skin, related to the feeling of touch.
  • Tactioception is another word for touch feeling.
  • The touching, pain, pressure, and temperature may all be perceived by accessible skin receptors and found all over the skin. When skin receptors are triggered, an impulse is generated that is transported to the spinal cord and subsequently to the brain.

Sensory Modalities

  • Sensory modality relates to how information is processed and the concept of transduction. The primary sensory modalities can be classified based on how they are transduced. 
  • Listing all of the numerous sensory modalities, which can number up to 17, entails breaking down the primary senses into more specific categories, or submodalities, of the larger sense.
  • Taking a particular modality is the sensation caused by a single stimulus. For example, the general feeling and perception of touch, known as somatosensation, can be divided into gentle pressure, deep pressure, vibration, itch, physical discomfort, temperature, or hair movement. 
  • In contrast, taste’s general feeling and perception can be divided into sweet, salty, sour, bitter, spicy, and umami submodalities, all based on various chemicals binding to sensory neurons.

Other Sense Organs

  • Aside from these five sense organs, there are two more that assist us in orienting ourselves in the environment. They are as follows:

VESTIBULAR SYSTEM

  • The vestibular system functions as a sensory system in the body, conveying information to the brain about motion, head position, and spatial orientation.
  • This system is also engaged in motor functions and aids in maintaining our body posture and balance, stabilizing our head and body during movement, and identifying our bodies’ orientation and posture concerning the surroundings.
  • As a result, the vestibular system is critical for proper movement and balance.

PROPRIOCEPTION SYSTEM

  • The unconscious or conscious sense of joint position is defined as the proprioception system.
  • This system assists the body with identifying the muscles, joints, and limbs in 3D space and the direction they are moving concerning the body.
  • A proprioception system allows us to walk or kick without looking at our feet, balance on one leg, touch our nose with our eyes closed, and sense the surface on which we are standing.

Sense Organs Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about sense organs across 26 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Sense Organs worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the sense organs, which are the body organs by which humans are able to see, smell, hear, taste, and touch or feel. The five sense organs are the eyes (for seeing), nose (for smelling), ears (for hearing), tongue (for tasting), and skin (for touching or feeling).

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Sense Organs Facts
  • Draw The Organ
  • Sense The World
  • Eye Spy
  • Smells Fishy
  • Taste Tints
  • Ear Parts
  • Track the Touch
  • Numb Feeling
  • Organ Trivia
  • The Sensory Song

Frequently Asked Questions

What is sense?

A sense is a bodily system that an individual employs to experience sensation, which is the process of obtaining information from the environment and responding to stimuli.

What are the sensory organs?

Our five sensory organs are the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin.

What do sensory modalities mean?

Sensory modality relates to how information is processed and the concept of transduction. The primary sensory modalities can be classified based on how they are transduced. 

What is the function of the vestibular system in our body?

The vestibular system functions as a sensory system in the body, conveying information to the brain about motion, head position, and spatial orientation.

What is the Proprioception system?

The unconscious or conscious sense of joint position is defined as the proprioception system.

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Link will appear as Sense Organs Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, January 7, 2019

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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