Rocket wants to hear a far-off bird better. He tapes two paper cones to a headband. "Super ears!" he says.
Raven giggles. "What do you notice about the shape of your real ears?"
Nova circles Rocket's head. "Your ears already have a shape for this job," she says. "Feel the curves."
Each ear has three sections: the outer ear, the middle ear and the inner ear.
They work together to collect sounds and send them to the brain.
| Section | Main job |
|---|---|
| Outer ear | Collects sound and funnels it in |
| Middle ear | Turns sound into vibrations and passes them on |
| Inner ear | Turns vibrations into nerve signals. Also helps balance. |
The part of the ear you can see is the pinna (say: PIN-uh).
It is made of tough cartilage covered by skin.
Its main job is to gather sounds. It funnels them into the ear canal.
The ear canal is the pathway that leads to the middle ear.
The skin in the ear canal makes earwax.
Earwax protects the canal by helping to clean out dirt.
Never put cotton swabs or fingers in your ear canal. A grown-up can ask a doctor about earwax.
| Statement | True or false? |
|---|---|
| The ear has three sections. | ? |
| The pinna is made of cartilage covered by skin. | ? |
| The ear canal leads to the middle ear. | ? |
| It is a good idea to poke things into your ear canal. | ? |
Nice listening! Tomorrow we go deeper, to the eardrum and the tiniest bones in your body.