Rocket peers into a mirror. "My eye has stripes and a black dot!" he says. "Is the dot a hole?"
Raven leans in to look at her own eye. "What do you notice about the colors?"
Nova hovers beside the mirror. "Look for three parts," she says. "One white, one with color, one dark."
Your eye is about as big as a table tennis ball.
It sits in a safe hollow in your skull called the eye socket.
The eyelid protects the front of the eye. Eyelashes help keep dirt out.
Blinking keeps the eye clean and moist. You blink several times a minute.
The white part is the sclera (say: SKLAIR-uh). It is a tough outer coat.
The cornea (say: KOR-nee-uh) is a clear dome on the front of the eye.
It is like a window, and it helps the eye focus.
The iris (say: EYE-riss) is the colored part. Blue eyes really mean blue irises!
The pupil is the black circle in the middle. It is an opening that lets light in.
The iris has muscles. They change the pupil's size to control how much light gets in.
| Part | What it looks like | Its job |
|---|---|---|
| Eyelid and lashes | Skin and little hairs | Protect and clean the eye |
| Sclera | The white part | Tough outer coat |
| Cornea | A clear dome | Lets light in and helps focus |
| Iris | The colored ring | Controls how much light gets in |
| Pupil | The black circle | An opening for light |
| Statement | True or false? |
|---|---|
| The pupil is an opening in the iris. | ? |
| The cornea is clear like glass. | ? |
| Blinking helps keep the eye clean and moist. | ? |
| The sclera is the colored part of the eye. | ? |
Sharp looking! Tomorrow we travel past the pupil to a hidden part that focuses light.