Cerebellum facts for kids

Brain: Cerebellum
Quick facts for kids
Drawing of the human brain, showing cerebellum and pons
Location of the human cerebellum (in red)
Latin	Cerebellum
Part of	Hindbrain
Artery	SCA, AICA, PICA
Vein	superior, inferior

The cerebellum is a special part of your brain. Its name means "little brain" in Latin. It is found at the back of your head, tucked under the main part of your brain. This "little brain" is very important for how you move and keep your balance. It helps make your movements smooth and precise.

What is the Cerebellum?

The word cerebellum comes from the Latin word cerebrum, which means "brain". So, cerebellum literally means "little brain". It's a good name because it looks like a smaller version of the main brain.

How the Cerebellum Helps You Move

The cerebellum is super important for how you control your body. It helps with many things, like:

• Making your movements smooth and coordinated.
• Helping you keep your balance so you don't fall.
• Making sure your movements happen at the right time.

Think about riding a bike or playing a sport. Your cerebellum is working hard to make sure your arms and legs move together perfectly. It doesn't start the movement, but it makes sure the movement is just right.

The cerebellum gets information from your spinal cord and other parts of your brain. It uses this information to fine-tune your actions. This means it makes small adjustments to your movements as you do them.

When the Cerebellum is Damaged

If the cerebellum gets hurt, it can cause problems with movement. People might have trouble with:

• Fine movements: Like writing or picking up small objects.
• Balance: They might feel wobbly or have trouble standing straight.
• Posture: How they hold their body.
• Learning new movements: Like learning a dance or a new sport.

When the cerebellum is damaged, movements can become shaky or uncoordinated. It's like trying to draw a straight line but your hand keeps wiggling.

The Cerebellum's Structure

The human cerebellum is a separate structure located at the bottom of the brain. It sits underneath the large cerebral hemispheres.

The cerebellum has a tightly folded outer layer called the cortex. This layer is made of "grey matter." Underneath this grey matter is "white matter." Inside the white matter, there are four groups of nerve cells called deep cerebellar nuclei. These nuclei send signals out from the cerebellum to other parts of the brain.

If you could unfold the human cerebellar cortex, it would be about 1 meter long and 5 centimeters wide. That's a lot of brain tissue packed into a small space!

Interesting Facts About the Cerebellum

• Doctors in Ancient Greece knew about the cerebellum.
• A famous ancient doctor named Galen described it first. He thought it was where nerves for movement came from.
• The human cerebellum changes as people get older.
• In very old people (like those over 100), the cerebellum often looks "younger" than other parts of their brain. It can seem about 15 years younger than expected!
• Most animals with a backbone (like fish, birds, and mammals) have a cerebellum.
• Many things can cause damage to the cerebellum. These include a stroke, bleeding in the brain, brain swelling, tumors, too much alcohol, and physical trauma.

Images for kids

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  View of the cerebellum from above and behind

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  A drawing showing the main parts of the cerebellum.

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  Purkinje cells (in orange) are special cells in the human cerebellum.

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  A Purkinje cell from a mouse, shown with a special dye.

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  Different types of cells in the cerebellum: Granule cells (bottom), parallel fibers (lines), and Purkinje cells (middle).

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  A diagram showing the layers of the cerebellum and a glomerulus.

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  A side view of the human cerebellum, showing different parts like the dentate nucleus and pons.

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  A drawing that shows how zones and microzones are structured in the cerebellum.

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  A model of how the cerebellum might process information, made by James Albus.

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  An ultrasound picture of a baby's head before birth, showing the cerebellum.

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  A cross-section of a porbeagle shark's brain, with the cerebellum in blue.

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  A drawing of the bottom of the human brain from 1543 by Andreas Vesalius.

See also

In Spanish: Cerebelo para niños