From March 16–22, students at the University of Saskatchewan traveled to elementary school classrooms to teach children about brain research.

Brain Awareness Week, a global campaign launched in 1995 by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives and the Society for Neuroscience, presents an opportunity to bring attention to brain science advances and advocate for science funding. Lisa Poon, a fourth-year psychology and anatomy major, was this year’s U of S coordinator.

“We go to elementary schools, Grade 4 to 6 classrooms around the city, and we just do fun, interactive presentations with them,” Poon said. “We also focus on teaching injury prevention regarding the head and brain.”

The week-long event culminated on March 22 with Brain Blast at the Saskatoon City Hospital atrium. Brain Blast featured a series of activities including a mock MRI machine, mock neuroscience lab, a Jeopardy-style neurology trivia game, Jell-O brains and other interactive stations.

“It’s a fun and simple way to help us get across the idea of just how interesting the brain is,” said ducation and prevention coordinator Julie Gerwing in a press release.

(click to scroll images)

There are 55 countries involved in Brain Awareness Week, with more than 860 events held globally every year.

Generally, Brain Blast attracts around 300 students but due to poor weather conditions was only attended by 150 people this year.

On May 9, the U of S will also host Saskatchewan’s first ever Brain Bee, a trivia competition for high school students modeled after a spelling bee.

“Brain Bees test your knowledge on a wide variety of topics, from memory, sleep and sensations, to things like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, stroke, schizophrenia, epilepsy, depression, addiction and brain research in general,” said Poon. “We’re going to be the first ones in Saskatchewan to do it.”

The Saskatchewan Brain Bee will take place in the Health Sciences Building and the winner will be invited to attend the national Brain Bee on May 30 at McMaster University. The national champion will receive a trip to the International Brain Bee in Cairns, Australia from Aug. 23–27, $1,500 and a chance to work as a summer intern at a neuroscience laboratory.

The International Brain Bee was founded in 1999 by the Society for Neuroscience and is supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Australasian Neuroscience Society, the International Society for Neurochemistry and the Asian-Pacific Society for Neurochemistry, among others. To date, the competition has more than 150 branches in over 30 nations.

A team of around 30 volunteers makes the Saskatchewan Brain Awareness Week possible. Poon volunteered for two years before being hired as the U of S coordinator in 2014.

Brain Awareness Week and Brain Blast are organized by the Saskatoon Health Region in partnership with the Saskatchewan Neuroscience Network, Parachute Canada and the Acquired Brain Injury Outreach Team at the Saskatoon City Hospital.

—

Photos: Katherine Fedoroff/Photo Editor