Math-Geography Lesson Plan
The Journey of Blood
Quick summary: Students will engage in an interactive math lesson in
which they will calculate the distance blood travels throughout the body
How long will it take: 40 minutes
What do I need:
Student worksheet (Page 5 in Worksheet Booklet in pocket)
Access to a mapping tool such as Google Maps or MapQuest
How does it work:
Begin the lesson by giving a basic overview of the heart and why
physical activity is important for heart health:
Your heart is made of a unique kind of muscle that isn’t found
anywhere else in your body. Although your heart is only about the
size of your fist, it is responsible for pumping blood all over your
body. The blood carries oxygen and other important nutrients,
wastes, proteins and chemicals to different places in your body.
Because the work of the heart is so important, if our heart is not
healthy, our bodies will be in serious trouble!
Just like your other muscles, your heart needs exercise to keep it
pumping strong. Getting your heart beating is how it gets exercise,
so it’s important to participate in physical activity every day for
at least 60 minutes. If you get active and play until you break a
sweat and are breathing hard, then you’re giving your heart a good
workout.
Next, ask the students to estimate how many miles blood travels a
day in the human body. Ask students to put their ‘bodies where their
minds are’ and create a human continuum, or line. Instruct students
to create a continuum line according to their estimates.
The student with the smallest distance traveled will stand on the left
side of the room and the student with the highest distance will be
on the right side. All other students will line up accordingly. Record
estimates on the board.
Share with students the fact that blood travels approximately 12,000
miles in one day. Ask students to take their seats and calculate
how many miles the blood will travel in a variety of time frames (see
worksheet).
Lesson Extension:
Ask students to display the calculated data by creating a map of the
United States with routes that represent the distance traveled in one
second, one minute, and one hour.
30
Math Standard Number and Operations Grade 6-8
Geography Standard 1: The World in Spatial Terms
Approximately how
many miles does blood
travel in the following
time frames?
Answer Key
One Second
12,000 miles × 1 hour
x 1 minute = 0.14 miles per second
24 hours
60 minutes 60 seconds
One Minute
12,000 miles × 1 hour = 8.33 miles per minute
24 hours
60 minutes
One Hour
12,000 miles = 500 miles per hour
24 hours
One Week
12,000 miles × 7 days
= 8,400 miles per week
1 day
1 week
One Month
12,000 miles × 30 days
= 360,000 miles per month
1 day
1 month
(based on 30 days)
One Year
In a lifetime
(based upon life
expectancy of 78
years)
12,000 miles × 365 days
= 4,380,000 miles per year
1 day
1 year
12,000 miles × 365 days
× 78 years = 341,640,000 miles
1 day
1 year
31
Worksheet for Math-Geography Lesson Plan
The Journey of Blood
Student Name:
Approximately how many
miles does blood travel in the
following time frames?
Class:
Date:
Calculation
One Second
One Minute
One Hour
One Week
One Month
(based on 30 days)
One Year
In a lifetime
(based upon life
expectancy of 78 years)
5