Official Kids Mag www.kidscoop.com © Vicki Whiting December 2021
4
olfactory organs
odor
molecules
It's a
candy
cane!
Sweet pine trees, candy canes
and steaming hot chocolate. Sniff!
Fresh-baked holiday bread, cookies and
roasting turkey. Sniff! The holidays
are full of wonderful smells.
How do you
pick up these
scents? Inside
each of your
nostrils is a tiny
patch, about
the size of a
thumbnail, filled
witholfactory
organs.
Every time
you breathe,
air passes over
the olfactory
organs. Odor
molecules in the
air get caught in
the sticky mucus
covering these organs.
cientists think that
different odor molecules
have different shapes. Like a key
fitting into a lock, odor molecule
shapes fit into different olfactory
organs. When an olfactory organ
gets an odor molecule that fits, it
sends a signal to the brain, telling
what kind of smell it is.
Standards Link: Life Science: Students know animals
have structures that serve different functions.
There is a pattern in each trail of smelly vapor. Draw what comes next.
Standards Link: Math: Extend simple patterns.
Match the odor molecules
to the olfactory organs.
Standards Link: Reading
Comprehension: Follow
simple written directions.
Unlock the
sense of smell.
