Hundreds of students will be using their heads today to learn about the human brain at an open house for Brain Awareness Week, a nationwide effort to teach students how their mind works.

About 600 elementary, middle and high school students from around the Puget Sound area will learn about the brain alongside neuroscience faculty and students.

Bryan White, a graduate student in the neurobiology and behavior program, is part of a team organizing exhibits and activities dealing with the senses.

“Our brain is always trying to make sense of the world,” he said.

One of the activities has participants listening to an “alien” language.

“Students will realize that they actually understand this alien language,” White said. “Our brains can fill in information when there is a lack of it.”

Other exhibits will help students learn the anatomy of human and animal brains.

“Different animals have different brains … that can tell us what that animal is good at,” he said.

White’s own children, a 2-year-old and 4-year-old, will help him mold brains out of Jell-O for the students’ enjoyment.

The UW has some of the top neuroscience departments in the country, said Eric Chudler, a research associate professor in the UW Department of Bioengineering and the creator of Neuroscience for Kids, a web resource available to help students and teachers learn about the brain.

“The UW is [a] rich resource of neuroscientific expertise,” Chudler said. “Also, there is a new interest in community outreach within the scientific community.”

Children should start learning about their grey matter as soon as possible, he said.

“Knowing about how the brain works may affect their lifestyle choices … and allow them to make better choices related to their health and that of others,” he said.

[Reach reporter Erinn Unger at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]