How Do Eyes See?
Season 3 Episode 8
Themes: Curiosity, Working Together
Plot Highlights
- The StoryBots receive a question from a little girl named Mia, who asks them how eyes see. The yellow StoryBot, Bing, says he knows where they can find the answer, so the group prepares for transport to the outside world.
- The StoryBots arrive in a dark forest, and they each appear a bit frightened as they ask Bing why he took them there. He explains that bats live there and he thinks they must be able to see well since they fly around in the dark, but they meet a bat who tells them it can’t see any better than they can.
- After hearing a scary noise, the group rushes out of the dark woods and find themselves under a streetlight on the street. The green StoryBot, Beep, realizes that they can see each other better when they’re under the streetlight, and she concludes that light must be necessary to see. After a lightning bolt strikes the streetlight and turns it off, they run for cover from the storm in a nearby castle.
- In the castle, the StoryBots meet a mad scientist, Dr. Pat. They ask her their question, and she tells them she’s been studying that topic for a new invention. She tells them about light waves, and how objects absorb some waves but reflect others that reach your eye.
- The StoryBots offer to help Dr. Pat with her project, and she reveals to them her invention: a robot with a giant eye. She suggests they climb inside to learn what happens to light when it enters the eye, and she teaches them about the pupil, iris, cornea, and lens.
- When the storm picks up, Dr. Pat gets excited and flips a lever, bringing her robot invention to life in a Frankenstein-esque moment. She’s excited and states that she’ll get milk and cookies, but the robot thinks she’s given it a command to get milk and cookies. It breaks through the castle wall and walks out into the storm with the StoryBots still inside.
- Dr. Pat calls the StoryBots and tells them she realized that the robot can’t see. Worse, they realize the robot is about to walk them off of a steep cliff. They check the panel of rods and cones in the back of the eye and see that they’re properly activated, so Dr. Pat suggests they check the optic nerve and make sure it’s connected to the brain.
- The group climbs out onto the optic nerve, and it is indeed unplugged from the brain. Bing fearlessly climbs up the slippery wires to plug it in, but he slips and tumbles down. The rest of the group catches him in a human chain and flings him back up toward the brain so he can plug in the wires.
- Once the optic nerve is plugged into the brain, the visual information is processed by the robot and it turns around just in time before the edge of the cliff. Dr. Pat explains that the final step in the process of sight is the brain processing the electrical signal from the optic nerve into a picture in your head.
- The StoryBots return to their boss and explain how people see, and the episode ends with one final song about the process of sight.
Discussion Questions
After this episode, we encourage you to ask your child what they learned about sight, and to discuss themes such as curiosity and working together. Consider exploring some of the following questions together.
- What did the StoryBots learn about eyes in this episode? Did anything surprise you?
- Do you have any other questions about how eyes work, or another body part? If your child has any questions, we encourage you to explore internet or library resources together to find answers. If your child is interested in learning more about eyes, consider watching this Youtube video from KidsHealth
- How did the StoryBots work together to connect the optic nerve to the brain of the robot? Can you think of a time when you’ve worked with others?
- Did you think any parts of the episode were scary? How did you feel when you were watching them?
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