LESSON PLANS : The Body Curriculum Unit (Early Childhood)
Learning Outcomes:
• Students will be able to identify body differences.
• Students will discover that the body is unique by exploring movement
and the five senses.
• Students will discuss and recognise the importance of keeping the body
healthy.
Focus Questions:
Why is our body important? What can our bodies do? How can we look after
our bodies?
Content:
Our body is important because it is unique, the only one of its kind. Our body
can move and has five senses, hearing, seeing, touching, tasting and smelling.
There is a special part in our body that lets us think and have feelings. This is
the brain. We look after our body by eating healthy food, exercising, resting
and keeping it clean.
Do - Talk - Record
Learning Experiences:
* In pairs, students look at
each other for differences,
e.g. eye colour, hair colour,
body shape, height, etc.
* As a class, talk about and
list on the board all the
differences.
- Teacher explains that we
are all different because we
have different parents and
come from different places.
* Individually using different
paper, pens, pencils, etc.
students make a picture or
a collage of themselves to
take home.
* Take students outside and
ask them to demonstrate all
the different ways the body
can move, e.g. run, jump,
skip, roll, hop, slide, crawl,
spin, fast, slow etc.
* In small groups, ask
students to think about and
make a movement sequence,
that is joining a variety of
movements together.
- Give them time to practise
and then show the class.
- Groups practise every day
and then at the end of the
week invite parents to watch.
* Pick a song to play to the
class. Ask the students to
listen.
- What did we do just then?
E.g. listened, heard, felt the
vibrations and rhythm and
enjoyed.
- How did we hear? E.g. ears,
brain.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that it is very important to
keep our ears and nose
clean so that we can hear
properly. We need to blow
our nose often and not sniff.
* As a class, ask students to
close their eyes. Wait for a
minute and ask them what
they saw. Now ask students
to open their eyes and list on
the board all the things they
can see, e.g. objects, people,
colours, etc.
- Ask students what we see
with, e.g. eyes and brain.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that we need to look after
our eyes and keep clean by
washing often.
Teacher Note: Collect a variety
of different foods for children
to touch, smell and taste,
e.g. bush foods, fruit, bread,
biscuits, cheese, nuts, snack
packs, etc. Put these objects
in separate bags that
students can’t see through.
The idea is to get students
to separately use the
different senses, feeling and
smelling. To do this students
will feel some of the objects
and smell others and try to
guess what they are. At the
end they get to eat
everything, so collect plenty.
* As a class, students
brainstorm how we keep
ourselves healthy, e.g. eating
healthy food, exercising often,
sleeping for at least 8 hours at
night and keeping clean, e.g.
washing our bodies, face,
blowing noses, playing etc.
- In small groups, students
make a collage of healthy living.
Hang these in the classroom
and invite parents and the
community to come and look.
Resources: Materials for
students section, pages 127131.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Evaluation:
Through identification, exploration, discussion and illustration, students will
demonstrate an understanding of body differences, its senses and the
importance of keeping it healthy.
77
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Methodology:
LESSON PLANS : The Body Curriculum Unit (Middle Primary)
Learning Outcomes:
• Students will construct a model of the body, to understand and recognise
major body systems and what they do.
Focus Questions:
What are the basic parts of the body and what do they do?
Content:
The major systems of the body are the skeletal - (gives the body its shape),
central nervous (controls body function and movement), respiratory
(breathing), circulatory - (moves blood around the body) and digestive (eats
and absorbs food and water and excretes waste products). Using a variety of
activities, the students will build a body doll of their own that will identify these
systems, the major body organs, and what these systems and organs do.
Methodology:
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Do - Talk - Record
Learning Experiences:
* Students trace each other
onto large pieces of paper to
be used as a body model.
* As a class, brainstorm all
the different parts of the
body, discussing individual
differences, e.g. size,
shape, colour, etc.
- Write the body parts on the
board and discuss each part
using a demonstration body
doll.
* Tell students that over the
next few lessons they will be
adding body parts to their
body model.
- The students can now start
their own model by putting
eyes, ears, nose, mouth (be
sure to include teeth), and
hair on their body model.
THE SKELETON
* Hand out Skeleton work
sheet and ask students to
copy and draw the bones
onto their body model.
Pages 83-89.
THE BRAIN
(Central Nervous System)
THE WIND PIPE and LUNGS
(Respiratory System)
* As a class, talk about the
following:
- Your brain is your body’s
main control centre, helping
you breathe, move, speak
and think.
- Your brain is connected to
the rest of your body by your
spinal cord.
- Your brain receives
information from the rest of
your body which it uses to
help you see, hear, feel, taste,
smell and keep your balance.
* Teacher explains to the
class that the wind pipe
connects the mouth and
nose to the lungs and that
air travels in and out of the
lungs through the wind pipe.
* Students use toilet roll
holders or rolled up paper,
etc. as the wind pipe and
two balloons as lungs and
add these to their body in the
correct place.
* Hand out the Brain Cut Out
sheet and get students to
work independently scrunching
up pieces of grey crepe paper
and sticking them onto the
Brain Cut Out. This can then
be stuck onto their body
model in the correct place.
Page 92.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that the skeleton gives the
body its shape.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Resources: Brain Cut Out
sheet, grey crepe paper,
scissors, glue.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
78
Resources: Balloons, tubes,
paper, rolls, glue.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Learning Experiences: ... cont’d ...
THE HEART
THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
THE RIB CAGE
* As a class, explain that the
heart acts like a large pump
to move blood around the
body. The blood carries lots
of good things for the body,
especially oxygen. It can also
carry bad things, e.g.
viruses, drugs, and that is
when we can get sick.
* As a class, talk about the
path that food takes from
going into your mouth and
out your bottom or anus.
* Ask students to feel their
rib cage.
- Ask them: What can you
feel? Is it soft or hard? Why
do you think it is there? Tell
students that the rib cage
protects internal organs, e.g.
heart and lungs.
* Students use white pipe
cleaners or strips of paper to
create a set of ribs to add to
their bodies.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
* Hand out the Heart Cut Out.
Page 93.
- Students cut out the heart,
scrunch up red crepe paper
and stick it onto the Heart
Cut Out to make a lifelike part.
They can then stick the heart
onto their model in the
correct place.
- Students can then use pipe
cleaners or paper as arteries
to show how blood can
travel to the brain. If time
permits the students could
use red pieces of paper to
stick on the arteries to show
the blood carrying the
oxygen.
- Start with the:
Mouth - the teeth chew the
food into small bits, the more
chewing the better so we
can swallow it easily;
Food pipe or oesophagus the munched up food goes
through this pipe to get to
the stomach;
Stomach - holds the food,
makes it mushy and gets it
ready for the intestines;
Intestines - are like a long
tube that the food goes
through and this is where
the all of the food we eat and
the water we drink gets into
our blood to be taken all over
our bodies.
- Students roll up some
coloured paper to use for the
food pipe and stick it onto
their model.
- Hand out two Stomach
work sheets to each student
for them to cut out. Students
then colour them, partly
staple them together leaving
a hole to stuff them with
paper. Page 94.
- Repeat this process for the
intestines. Page 95.
Teacher Note: By using cutting
out, stuffing, colouring in and
sticking, we are giving
students the opportunity to
develop different motor skills
and give their models some
dimensions.
* Students add these parts
to their body models.
Resources: Heart Cut Out, red
crepe paper, red pipe
cleaners, glue.
Resources: Stomach and
Intestines Cut Outs, rolled up
paper or toilet paper for the
food pipe.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Resources: White paper or
pipe cleaners, glue.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Evaluation:
Through discussion and fine motor skill activities, e.g. cutting, pasting and
colouring to make their own body models, students will demonstrate an
understanding of major body systems and what they do.
79
LESSON PLANS : The Body Curriculum Unit (Upper Primary)
Learning Outcomes:
• Students will investigate how the respiratory, digestive, circulatory, and
central nervous systems work and how they are linked.
Focus Questions:
How do substances travel throughout the body?
Content:
The food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, drugs and any other
substances, travel through the body using combinations of the respiratory,
digestive and circulatory systems. The circulatory system is the one that links
these systems to the brain and the central nervous system.
Methodology:
Do - Talk - Record
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Learning Experiences:
*
Tell
students
that
everything we put into the
body affects the way the
body works.
- Students brainstorm how
this happens, e.g. breathing
eating drinking, heart, lungs,
blood, brain, drugs, good,
bad, etc.
- Sort ideas into lists of good
and bad things and body
organs or systems.
- As a class, talk about the
lists and why students have
placed things where they
are.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that all substances travel
through the body via the
blood. The things we eat and
drink get into the blood via
the stomach and intestines.
The things we breathe in get
into the blood via the lungs.
All of these substances get
into our brain and the central
nervous system via the
blood.
* Give each student a
balloon and ask them to blow
the balloon up as much as
they can with a single breath
and tie them.
- Talk about what happened,
e.g. breathed in through the
mouth and nose, air travelled
through the wind pipe and
into the lungs. We used our
diaphragm muscle to push
the air out of our lungs, up
the wind pipe, out through
the mouth and into the
balloon.
- As a class, students hold
their balloon, compare the
sizes of the balloons and line
themselves in order by
balloon size, smallest to
largest. Talk about what the
line looks like and write
students’ responses onto
“balloon shaped” cards and
place up on the walls.
Teacher Note: Tell students
the reason that balloons are
different sizes is because of
strength or size of lungs due
to age, fitness, gender,
health, sickness, smoking,
etc.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that when people smoke, the
poisons in the smoke cause
damage to all of the parts of
the lungs.
* Place a large chart of the
respiratory system on the
board. Hand out Respiratory
System work sheets to the
students. Pages 99-102.
- On the large chart point to
each part in turn, and ask
students to name each part
and record this on their work
sheet.
80
* As a class, explain that
through the process of
breathing,
also
called
respiration, oxygen-rich air is
absorbed into the blood
through the walls of the
lungs
and
distributed
throughout the body. We
breathe out carbon dioxide
which our bodies can’t use,
but plants need to grow and
make oxygen for us to
breathe.
- Explain that all organs and
muscles rely on oxygen-rich
blood to remain fresh and
work properly.
Resources:
Respiratory
System, pages 96-104.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
* As a class, discuss the
digestive system:
- mouth - chews the food up
so we can swallow it;
- oesophagus - squeezes
the food down to the
stomach;
- stomach - stores the food
and breaks it down and
moves the food into the small
intestine in waves by
squeezing in its walls;
Learning Experiences: ... cont’d ...
* Hand out the Digestive
System work sheet and ask
students to label the six main
parts of the digestive system
with the name and the
function. Page 119.
* In groups of six, students
dramatise the six digestive
system parts, working to
pass food through the
digestive system and present
their act to the rest of the
class. Pages 120-122.
Resources: Digestive System,
pages 113-115.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
* As a class, ask students if
they
know
how
the
respiratory and digestive
systems work together to
provide the body with
oxygen and the other
substances
needed
to
maintain good health.
Teacher Note: It is the
circulatory system that links
the digestive and respiratory
systems to the body. Refer to
the Circulatory System Teacher
Resource. All the information
you need to teach this topic
is detailed here, together
with suggested activities.
Students need to know that
blood is made up of four
components; plasma, red
cells, white cells and
platelets. Students need to
know the three main
functions of blood. Students
need to understand that the
heart is like a big pump that
moves blood around the
body. Oxygen-rich blood is
carried through the body by
arteries and then the smaller
capillaries, and returned to
the heart by veins.
brain and spinal cord form
your central nervous system.
- Your nerves coordinate your
body helping you to move
and keep your balance.
Nerves also send information
to and from your sense
organs helping you see, hear,
taste touch and smell.
Teacher Note: Tell students
that drugs usually enter the
body via the respiratory and
digestive systems and are
then passed onto the
circulatory system, just like
food, water and oxygen. All
drugs affect the way your
nerves communicate with
your brain and drugs like
tobacco,
alcohol
and
cannabis all slow your body
down.
* Ask students to stand
around you in a circle. Call out
someone’s name and throw
a ball softly to them.
- Ask the students what they
did, e.g. responded to the
sound of their name, moved
to catch the ball.
Resources:
Circulatory
System, pages 105-112.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
* As a class, talk about the
central nervous system.
- This is your body’s control
centre. Nerves carry signals
to and from your brain and
every single part of your
body. The main pathway for
these signals is your delicate
spinal cord. Neurons in your
Teacher Note: Tell students
that this happened because
the central nervous system
works very quickly and can
do many things at the same
time.
This would not happen as
well if your body was
affected by drugs.
Resources: Central Nervous
System. Pages 123 and 145.
Story, page 154.
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Evaluation:
Through discussion, brainstorming, role play and writing activities students
will show their understanding of how the respiratory, digestive, circulatory
and central nervous systems work, and how they are linked.
81
TOPIC 4 : The Body
- small intestine - is where
all of the things we eat are
made small enough to get
into our blood to go all
around the body, the waste
or larger pieces are passed
on;
- large intestine - gets the
leftover food, takes out the
water and sends any other
waste to the rectum/anus;
- rectum and anus - gets all
the waste from the large
intestine and sends it to the
anus to go to the toilet.
Bones hold our bodies up!
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Without them we would be like grubs!
Crawling around!
83
84
TOPIC 4 : The Body
If you are a Top End school you may choose to
point out the tradition of X-ray paintings here.
Maybe students can do their own.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
How do desert kids draw skeletons?
85
86
TOPIC 4 : The Body
87
TOPIC 4 : The Body
88
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Now the toe bone’s connected to the (clap) foot bone
The foot bone’s connected to the (clap) ankle bone
The ankle bone’s connected to the (clap) shin bone
Now hear the word of the Lord
Them bones them bones them dry bones
Them bones them bones them dry bones
Them bones them bones them dry bones
Now hear the word of the Lord
Now the shin bone’s connected to the (clap) knee bone
The knee bone’s connected to the (clap) thigh bone
The thigh bone’s connected to the (clap) hip bone
Now hear the word of the Lord
CHORUS
Now the hip bone’s connected to the (clap) back bone
The back bone’s connected to the (clap) neck bone
The neck bone’s connected to the (clap) head bone
Now hear the word of the Lord
Them bones them bones are gonna’ WALK AROUND!
Them bones them bones are gonna’ STALK AROUND!
Them bones them bones are gonna’ TALK AROUND!
WWWWHHHHHHOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo!
89
TOPIC 4 : The Body
CHORUS
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Class
Family
Sports team
90
91
TOPIC 4 : The Body
92
TOPIC 4 : The Body
93
TOPIC 4 : The Body
94
TOPIC 4 : The Body
95
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Teacher’s Notes : The Respiratory System
These notes are for teachers in order for you to basically
understand what makes up the respiratory system and how
the system works.
●
●
How and why we breathe
Bad air/pollution and that it causes disease
Respiration (breathing)
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Like everything else in our bodies, breathing is controlled
and monitored by our brains.
Breathing supplies oxygen to our lungs and through the
system to all of our cells.
Each and every cell in our body needs oxygen to work
properly to keep us alive.
The parts of the respiratory system are
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
The nose
Pharynx
Trachea
Bronchi
Bronchioles and air passages
Alveoli
Lungs
96
Teacher’s Notes : The Respiratory System ... continued...
We use our noses to breathe in air. Once inside the
nose, the air we breathe is filtered, moistened and
warmed before it begins to travel to the lungs.
The small hairs in our nose also help keep
out dirt.
A bit further down the pharynx is the larynx. The
larynx or voice box (containing our vocal cords)
is what allows us to talk. During the time that the
air is in the larynx and the pharynx it is filtered,
moistened and warmed more.
The trachea, bronchi and bronchioles are the tubes
that take the mostly cleaned air into our lungs.
The lungs are what we fill with oxygen
and air every time we breathe. It is
important to keep them clean and
healthy and to keep harmful pollution
such as cigarette smoke out of them.
It is the job of the lungs to breathe in and out, exchanging
gasses between the alveoli, and the surrounding small
blood vessels and capillaries.
97
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Next is the pharynx. This is the same canal
that our food goes down. The pharynx
connects to our eustachian tubes, part of our
hearing, and our sinuses.
Teacher’s Notes : The Respiratory System ... continued...
The alveoli take in the fresh oxygen from the lungs through
their thin walls and take it all over the body by transferring
it into the blood.
What also happens is that the waste gases from the cells,
such as carbon dioxide are removed by the blood and
carried back to the alveoli. It is also here that waste gasses
pass through the alveoli’s thin walls back into the lungs to
be breathed out.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The breath that we breathe out is not the same as what we
breathe in. It is full of waste products from our bodies and
carbon dioxide.
Of course when we run or do hard exercises we need more
oxygen for the hardworking cells of our muscles, so our
brains tell our lungs to breathe harder and to puff.
Bad or polluted air does not have as much oxygen as clean
air. This makes it harmful to our bodies. This is one of the
ways we can be harmed by smoking.
98
99
TOPIC 4 : The Body
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Respiratory system words.
They are jumbled up – can you sort
them out?
ungl
__________
xgoyne
__________
sneo
__________
brtehae
__________
refhs ria
__________
exseirec
__________
100
Lung
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Oxygen
Nose
Breathe
Fresh air
Exercise
101
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Breathe in air - can you get enough?
1
Open mouth – nostrils closed
YES
NO
2
Mouth closed – nostrils open
YES
NO
3
Mouth closed – one nostril closed
YES
NO
4
Mouth closed – nostrils closed
YES
NO
102
Why is he coughing?
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Find four POLLUTANTS
103
HEY!
Can you see what happens when food or
drink gets into the wrong pipe?
Try and label the parts with a dot on them.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
OH – And please give this person some hair!
104
105
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Teacher’s Notes : The Circulatory System
These are basic notes for you to read and understand,
when the students work on the circulatory system in The
Body unit. The students will also need to understand the
circulatory system and its importance and function when
working on the Tobacco and other drug units.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The Circulatory System
●
What is the circulatory system? – How does blood travel
around the body?
●
How does the heart work? What is its structure?
●
What is the function of blood vessels?
●
What is blood? What purposes does it serve?
The Circulatory System
The circulatory system is made up of blood, the heart,
arteries, veins and capillaries.
The heart pumps blood around the body in strong spurts
(heartbeats). Blood is pumped through the VESSELS
(arteries, veins and capillaries) by the heart.
The role of the circulatory system is to deliver and remove
all of the required nutrients and wastes our body needs or
expels.
Whatever we put into our bodies, either by eating or
inhaling, will enter our circulatory system to be
delivered around the body.
Blood
Our bodies usually contain about seven litres of blood.
Blood is a liquid made up of plasma, cells and platelets.
Blood is the delivery system of the body delivering nutrients
and picking up wastes for expulsion.
106
Teacher’s Notes : The Circulatory System ... continued ...
Plasma makes up 55% of blood. It is a liquid and carries
all essential nutrients, hormones, digested food, antibodies,
and carbon dioxide around the body depending on
requirements at the time.
There are three kinds of blood cells – red blood cells,
white blood cells and platelets.
Red blood cells carry haemoglobin. This carries oxygen
from the lungs to all the cells that make up our body.
Platelets allow blood to clot. Clotting stops cuts from
bleeding. If blood was not able to clot it would all run out
from cuts and bruises.
People have different blood types. There are four main
types or groups of blood.
● A
●
B
●
AB
●
O
There are also some rarer blood types.
The Heart
The heart is the amazing muscle that pumps our blood
around our bodies, never stopping until we die.
The beat of the heart is called the pulse.
The heart is protected by the sternum and the backbone. It
is further protected by the lungs and the rib cage.
The heart works hard pumping between 70 and 90 ml of
blood each time it beats. The heart can pump all the blood
in our system in just over a minute.
107
TOPIC 4 : The Body
White blood cells are the warriors of the body. Their job
is to defend the system against germs. They attack germs
and destroy them and produce antibodies.
Teacher’s Notes : The Circulatory System ... continued ...
When we get excited or when we exercise, the heart beats
faster so that it can supply more oxygen to the cells that
make up our muscles. The blood will then pick up the
wastes from those cells and move them out.
The heart is about as big as your fist and never rests.
The heart is divided into chambers, four altogether, but there
are two main sides to the heart, the left and the right sides.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Blood passes from one side of the heart to the other. Blood
flows from the heart chambers to the main arteries through
the aorta. There are small valves between the chambers
and arteries to stop the blood from running back into the
chambers. This keeps the blood travelling in the same
direction all the time.
Arteries take the blood away from the heart. This blood is
very red because it is filled with fresh oxygen from the
lungs. The arteries branch out into smaller arteries and
then into tiny capillaries all through the body. The nutrients
are then delivered.
Arteries may become clogged with a build up of fats and
plaque. This is why we need to eat a healthy, low fat diet.
The capillaries then branch back into small veins, which
become larger as they get near the heart. The blood here is
dark because the oxygen is gone and now it carries wastes
and carbon dioxide, which we will breathe out.
The large veins join together and meet at the right ventricle
or chamber of the heart. Here the blood is pumped into the
heart again to give up its wastes and collect more oxygen
before leaving through the aorta again.
Blood Pressure
A regular measure of a healthy heart and circulatory system
is a blood pressure check.
Blood pressure is the force applied to the walls of the blood
vessels as the heart pumps the blood around the body.
108
Teaching Time
Some possible activities
Make words related to circulation
Make a word using each letter as a beginning. For example,
a - artery.
The words all relate to circulation.
Diagram of the heart
Draw the diagram on the board. Get the students to come
up and show how the blood comes in and out of the heart.
Let the students try and draw a heart.
Ask students to feel for a pulse in the neck (carotid), or the
wrist (radial). Explain that their pulse is the beating of
their heart.
Ask the students what they think would happen if their
arteries became blocked.
● Would as much blood be able to pump through?
● Do you think you would get tired?
● What would happen if the artery became totally blocked?
● What would cause an artery to become blocked?
109
TOPIC 4 : The Body
PULSE!
110
TOPIC 4 : The Body
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Hmm – make words related to circulation
from these letters !
111
Hhhhmmmmmm – Can you complete these
sentences?
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The _ _ _ _ _ cage and the _ _ _ _ _ _ protect the heart.
Our heartbeat can be felt in our _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . It is called
the p_ _ _ _.
The heart only has a short _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ between beats.
Blood flows in to the heart through the _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .
The heart is a strong _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .
The heart is made of _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .
The heart _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ blood.
Blood flows out from the heart full of _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .
112
Teacher’s Notes : The Digestive System
These are some notes for you that will help you in the unit
on the digestive system.
● What is the digestive system and what is its function?
● What is the structure of the digestive system?
● What tasks do the many different parts of the system
do?
● How can we best have a healthy digestive system?
The digestive system is also known as the alimentary canal.
The whole canal is over eight metres long! Ask students to
measure eight metres, so they can see how long this is.
The system processes our food, and breaks it into vitamins
minerals and other elements which then go as nutrients to
supply all of our body.
The digestive system is made up of many different parts
though all are connected from one end through to the other
end.
Mouth
This is the entrance to the digestive system, and as soon as
we even think of some foods, our system begins to work
by excreting saliva. OUR MOUTH WATERS.
Saliva moistens food to make it easier to process, and it
also begins digestion by adding enzymes to break the
food down.
113
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The Digestive System
Teacher’s Notes : The Digestive System ... continued ...
The other important parts of this section of the digestive
system are our teeth and tongue.
Teeth chew and break food into smaller manageable pieces
and the tongue moves the food around the mouth and
helps us swallow. The tongue tastes food too!
Oesophagus
TOPIC 4 : The Body
This is the strong muscular tube that goes down inside our
throats. The oesophagus contracts and squeezes pushing
food into our stomachs.
When food goes down the wrong pipe, it has missed our
oesophagus and parts of it have gone into our windpipe.
Then we cough and splutter, to stop it getting down further.
Stomach
We know where this is and we like to keep it happy and
full!
After food has been swallowed and pushed down the
oesophagus into the stomach, a sphincter muscle at the
top closes to keep the food from rising up full of stomach
acids into the oesophagus again. If more food comes down
it opens up and lets it in!
The stomach is protected by the rib cage and mixes the
food we have eaten with strong acids and liquids that break
the food into smaller pieces and juices. The mixture is
squished and squelched by strong contractions. The food
is then pushed down into the small intestine.
THE AMAZING THING IS THAT ALL OF THIS ACTIVITY TAKES
PLACE WITHOUT US EVEN REALLY BEING AWARE OF IT!
114
Teacher’s Notes : The Digestive System ... continued ...
The Gall Bladder and Pancreas
These two parts send bile and enzymes into the stomach.
The bile and enzymes break up fats and proteins and send
them into our bodies as fuels. The pancreas also produces
hormones to control our blood sugar levels.
The Small Intestine
It is around about six and a half metres long!
More breaking down is done without us even knowing it
and then the liver delivers the extra nutrients to the blood
and all over the body.
The Large Intestine
What is left of your food at this point in the digestive
process is a sludgy type of mix of about 70% water.
Some of the water is taken in through the walls of the large
intestines, as are vitamins, salt and minerals.
If we do not drink enough water our body will take it from
the mix in the large intestine and we will become
constipated.
When the large intestine has done its job, the sludge
becomes faeces and enters the rectum.
Muscles then let us know when it is time for the faeces to
be expelled at the toilet.
115
TOPIC 4 : The Body
It is full of tiny wavy ‘fingers’ called villi. The villi are full of
tiny blood vessels, which collect nutrients and send them
into the blood to be taken to the liver.
Dietary fibre is eaten and travels through our whole
system unchanged. It is in foods such as oats, fruits,
bran and is a large part of all vegetables.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Dietary fibre helps the food move easily through our
digestive system and helps keep our insides clean.
Dietary fibre also helps us to expel faecal matter.
Without dietary fibre we run the risk of some horrible
consequences. They are :
Bowel and colon cancer
● Haemorrhoids
● A struggle at the toilet (constipation)
●
We can prevent these diseases in a number of ways.
1. We need to drink enough water. At least two litres
a day!
2. We need to go to the toilet when our body tells us
to!
3. We need to eat a lot of fruit and vegetables!
4. We need to exercise!
Sometimes other problems can develop such as gas and
diarrhoea.
116
Gas is caused by the food we sometimes eat (beans are famous
for this), and is easily fixed up by not mixing some foods together
or by going to the toilet.
A germ may cause diarrhoea. It can also be caused by other
types of infection. Stress and nervousness can also cause
diarrhoea. Hand washing helps prevent diarrhoea.
When a person has diarrhoea, the large intestine does not
absorb enough water and the sludgy, liquid product is what is
expelled, often quite quickly!
If a person gets diarrhoea, the situation needs fast action.
Children especially can become quickly dehydrated and if there
is a particularly bad germ in the system there can also be
vomiting.
Children are at great risk and can become dangerously ill in a
short time if they have both diarrhoea and vomiting.
Children should be taken straight to the clinic, or a hospital for
treatment. There are a lot of good medicines for diarrhoea.
117
TOPIC 4 : The Body
If a person has gas all the time over a longer period, they
should see a doctor, as there could be another problem in their
system.
1
mouth = green
2 liver = purple
3 stomach = yellow
TOPIC 4 : The Body
4 lungs = black
5 heart = orange
6 large intestine = pink
7 small intestine = red
8 oesophagus = blue
Do you like the colours?
Are these the real colours
of our body organs or not?
118
119
TOPIC 4 : The Body
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Digestion starts here
with chewing and mixing
with saliva and enzymes
so that food can be
swallowed.
The pipe that runs down your
throat to the stomach. Strong
muscles squeeze the mixed
and chewed food down.
120
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Churns, mixes and
squeezes food around,
mixing bile and acids to
break food down more
before sending it to the
small intestine
It’s all squiggly and is very
long. Here is the place
where food begins to go
into the blood stream to
be used by our bodies
for energy.
What is left is all slushy
and it goes into the large
intestine for more
processing.
121
It is shorter than the
small intestine but fatter.
All the left over food and
nutrients are taken out
here into the bloodstream.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Extra water is also
removed. What is left goes
to the rectum.
Here the wastes of the body
are stored and sent to the
rectum.
The rectum is the last part of
our digestive system. Strong
muscles push the left over
wastes, called faeces, out of
the rectum and out of the body.
122
Teacher’s Notes : The Central Nervous System
This information on the nervous system will not turn you
into an expert but will give you the information you need
for the unit.
● What is the central nervous system?
● What is the structure of the nervous system?
● What tasks does the system perform and how?
● How can the nervous system be hurt and what are the
consequences?
The central nervous system is our body’s control centre.
The system is made up of your brain, nerves and the
pathways they follow through your body.
Nerves
There is a whole network of nerves that run to every part
of your body.
There are over 75 kilometres of nerves in a person’s body;
they run signals around the body at a speed of 120 metres
a second! That’s fast! Our brain and nervous system are
like a computer that would run a robot.
Nerves allow us to feel, they maintain our balance and coordinate our body’s movements. They send information to
parts of the brain where it is processed and translated into
things we recognise, like pain, sight, temperature, taste
and touch.
123
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The Central Nervous System
Teacher’s Notes : The Central Nervous System ... continued ...
The Brain
Your brain sits in your skull where it is protected by thick
bone and floats in a protective fluid.
The brain is the control centre of the body. The brain allows
us to breathe, speak, see and taste. The brain is connected
to your whole body by nerves and the spinal cord.
Signals from nerves in the body are sent straight to the
brain. The signals are then translated into pain, sight and
other feelings.
TOPIC 4 : The Body
The Spinal Cord
The spinal cord is like a large tough electrical cable. Bundles
of nerves run through it, and thick sheathing and the bones
of the spinal column protect the precious nerves.
If our spine is injured, the nerves may be squashed or cut.
Damaged nerves cannot be repaired by the body!
That is why we see people who have damaged nerves or
spinal columns in wheelchairs. Some have no feeling in
their legs at all.
How do messages get around the nervous system?
Nerve cells are called neurons.
Neurons pass signals from one neuron to another.
There are two main types of neuron: sensory and motor
neurons.
124
Teacher’s Notes : The Central Nervous System ... continued ...
Sensory neurons carry signals from sense organs to the
spinal cord and the brain.
Motor neurons allow us to move by sending signals to the
muscles.
It really is amazing!
The central nervous system including the brain, spinal cord
and the nerves, can be damaged in a number of ways.
Accidents are the main cause of damage.
ONCE ANY PART OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM IS
DAMAGED IT IS TOO LATE!
DAMAGE TO THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM CAN
NEVER BE REPAIRED!
The consequences of a damaged nervous system can be
loss of sense – hearing, sight, touch or feeling, lack of
taste.
Other consequences are destroyed brain cells, which may
not allow us to speak again or to be able to remember or
even think properly.
Motor neurons and nerves that are damaged will stop us
from being able to control our bodies.
125
TOPIC 4 : The Body
Alcohol, petrol and solvent sniffing, smoking and drug abuse
are some ways that the brain can be damaged that are
preventable.