Teacher Pages. Grade Level 3-5

Transcription

1 Grade Level 3-5 Activity Summary: The Happening Heart Students will explore by demonstration the heart s pumping action with the use of a bucket of water and their hands. Time minutes Activity Summary: Cholesterol s Clogging Caper Using toilet paper rolls, students will work with clay to create a visual representation of how cholesterol builds up inside the artery walls. Time minutes Classroom Activities Full educational standards available online at The Heart Teacher Pages Designers Brianne Miller, Molly Bugaile

2 Dear Educator, In this section of the text, you will encounter a number of helpful resources to guide you in teaching the lessons found in this module. The first portion of this page contains keywords that may appear in the following lessons. Definitions have been provided for your convenience. The following portion provides you with an idea for generating discussion in your classroom and preparing your students for the activities provided. These discussion activities will be a great addition to the lessons. Not only do they introduce the concepts to be taught, but they help gauge the extent of your students prior knowledge about the content you will be presenting and teaching. Keywords H2 Plaque- Accumulations of soft masses of fatty material, particularly cholesterol beneath the linings of the arteries. Cholesterol- A soft waxy substance found within every cell in the body. The body needs small amounts of cholesterol to function properly. However elevated levels of cholesterol in the blood can lead to plaque build-up within the arteries. Cardiac Muscle- Cardiac muscle is a special type of muscle that is only found in the walls of the heart. These muscles contract involuntarily and are responsible for the constant pumping of blood throughout the body. Heart Valve- Tissue flaps within the heart that open and close to regulate blood flow throughout the chambers of the heart. Materials Handouts 1 and 2 Discussion time Discuss the heart with your students. Direct your students to fill out the KWL chart (handout 2). They should fill out the first column of the chart ( K Column) with information they already know about the heart. The middle column ( W Column) contains questions about what your students want to know about the heart. Finally, when the following lessons are completed, you can revisit this chart with your students to complete the final column on the chart ( L Column). This column will contain information they learned while completing the activities in each lesson. Don t forget to use the Class KWL Chart (handout 1) to discuss and record a few of the classroom s responses.

3 The heart is the most important muscle in your body! Heart Activity I Just Beat It! The heart is the most important muscle in the human body! It acts like a pump to deliver blood throughout the entire body. Before each beat, the heart fills with blood. Then it contracts, or squeezes, to move blood into the blood vessels all through the body. As a result, the body s other organs are able function properly because blood delivers oxygen and nutrients to the brain, muscles, bones and organs for energy. The heart is made of millions of special, long muscle cells, called cardiomyocyte cells. The special cells are controlled by electrical signals that pass from cell to cell throughout the heart. These electrical signals cause the cells to contract, or tighten, and produce a heart beat! This important organ has four main open spaces called cavities. The two top cavities are called the atria, while the bottom two cavities are called ventricles. On the other hand, if you are talking about one of the top cavities it is called an atrium while one bottom cavity is called a ventricle. These cavities work together to pump the blood through the entire body. The right side of the heart contains the right atrium and right ventricle. This side receives blood lacking oxygen from the body and pumps it into the lungs to get a refill of oxygen! The left side of the heart, or the left atrium and the right atrium, takes the oxygenfilled blood from the lungs and pumps it out to the body. The heart continually completes this process all day and all night, all the time, working hard to deliver oxygen and energy to all the body s organs. Once the organs receive the oxygen-filled blood they need, they are able to do their job to help you do your daily tasks! H3 Time minutes Materials 5 deep buckets of water Blank diagrams of the heart What Will Your Students Be Doing? Using a bucket of water and their hands, your students will work in groups to demonstrate and explore the heart s pumping action. Instructions 1. Students will gather all materials for their group members. Place your hands one inside the other to form a cup. 2. Each student must place their left and right hands together, one inside the other, to form a cup. Close your thumbs together so that the opening of the cup you created is about a quarter of an inch wide.

4 Fill the buckets with water. 3. Students will then carefully put their group s filled bucket of water on a flat surface. Taking turns with their group members, students will put their cupped hands under the surface of the water. Before completing the following step, remind students to close their thumbs together so the opening they create is about a quarter of an inch wide 4. One at a time, students will open and squeeze their hands together. As they quickly repeat this process, remind students to open and close the opening at the top of their hands. The sides of their hands should remain tightly clasped and touching each other. Tell students to watch out! Water will spurt out of their hands so they should not be alarmed! 5. When the heart pumps blood it does not spurt out all over the place like the water will! The blood flows into blood vessels which transport the blood all throughout the body. Students will take turns completing Steps 3 and 4 until all of their group members have had a turn. When all students are finished, remind students to wipe up any spilled water, put away all of their groups materials, and remain seated in their groups. H4 The above diagram is shown on the students pages. Reflection Time for a class discussion! What new things did you discover? What is the most interesting fact/information you learned? What did you enjoy most about this activity? What do you think/how do you feel about the heart now? Follow-Up Students will fill out the diagram to the left. Remaining in their groups, students will work together to label and fill out the blank spaces on the diagram. Encourage students to not be afraid to ask group members or a teacher questions if they become confused or lost! ANSWER: see handout 3 for responses. ADAPTATIONS: if students are not very familiar with the anatomy of the heart, you can write the appropriate word bank on the blackboard and encourage students to match the terms to the letters as a class.

5 Materials Handout 4 Too easy? Students who require enrichment activities can try this step! Have students first connect the dots with a red crayon to show blood carrying oxygen away from the heart and lungs. Then, have students use a blue crayon to show the blood containing very little oxygen coming back into the heart! Solution: Red: 7-14 (lung to body) Blue: 14-1 (body to lung) Directions Working individually, your students will connect the dots to discover how blood circulates through the heart and body! They will start by finding dot 1. Then, students will draw a line that connects dot 1 to dot 2. Remind students they can start from either end of the vessel since blood comes into the heart through both ends. Students will finish this activity by connecting the rest of the dots with drawn lines between the remaining dots (3-15). H5 Discussion When finished, students can participate in a class discussion, talking about their thoughts and experiences with classmates and teachers. The above diagram represents handout 4. What is happening? Since blood brings oxygen to all the cells in the body, the blood needs to be pumped pretty hard to travel through all the body s vessels. That is where the heart comes in to do its job! When the blood has delivered all of its oxygen, it returns to the heart for a new push and then goes to the lungs to retrieve more oxygen. This is a small distance to travel, so the heart doesn t have to pump very hard to send the blood to the lungs. The blood then returns to the heart to get pushed out again to visit the whole body! Don t forget that blood always returns to the heart to be pumped before going out to the body again.

6 Heart Activity 2 What is this cholesterol, anyway? H6 As cholesterol builds up inside the arteries, less blood can pass through! What is cholesterol, again? Cholesterol is a waxy, fatlike substance found in the body s cells and blood supply. Cholesterol comes from two sources: your body s natural supply (75%) and the food you eat (25%). Certain foods contain cholesterol, including eggs, butter, heavy cream, shrimp, sardines, veal, pork ribs and lamb. Other risk factors, including smoking, excessive consumption of alcohol, obesity, and certain inherited genes, can also elevate the level of cholesterol in your body. Your body needs a certain amount of cholesterol to make vitamins and certain hormones. It also transports necessary fatty acids, insulates nerves, and forms cell membranes. When too much cholesterol builds up in the blood stream, however, it causes plaque to form on the walls of the arteries. This condition is known as coronary heart disease. Too much plaque in the body s blood vessels limits the amount of oxygen carried to the heart by blood cells. When this occurs, heart cells die. This causes an interruption in heart beats. This is known as a heart attack. Plaque can build up in other parts of the body too, causing serious health problems. For example, plaque can build up in the blood vessels leading to the brain, resulting in a stroke. Poor diet is a main cause of plaque build-up, stemming from excess amounts of protein, calcium and cholesterol. Total Time minutes Materials Needed: Toilet paper rolls (one per student) Clay What Will Your Students Be Doing? Working in groups, students will use toilet paper rolls and clay to demonstrate how cholesterol builds up inside the artery walls. Instructions Students will gather toilet paper rolls and clay for their group members. Next, each student will take a small piece of clay and place it along the

7 inside wall of the toilet paper roll. 3. Students will continue adding small pieces of clay along the inside of toilet paper roll, one at a time. Each time they add more clay, students will observe the changes taking place and record their thoughts on a piece of paper. Reflection What does the clay represent? What do you think the toilet paper roll represents? What changes do you see taking place? What is happening to the toilet paper roll? What would happen as the blood passes through the narrow artery? What might happen to the heart because of the narrowing? H7 Follow-Up Encourage students to share their answers with their group members, along with what they have discovered and enjoyed from this Learning Center. Remind students that this is a time to share any questions, concerns or other comments with everyone. Want to Fight Cholesterol? Here s How! There are two types of cholesterol good cholesterol, called HDL (highdensity lipoprotein), and bad cholesterol, called LDL (low-density lipoprotein). The LDL cholesterol tends to build-up on the inner walls of blood vessels. A healthy level of HDL cholesterol should be between 40 and 75. Levels of LDL cholesterol should be between 70 and 160. A high cholesterol level is a serious problem that generally affects adults. Too much LDL cholesterol in blood can clog arteries and increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. The lifestyle choices you make throughout your life can really help! To lower one s bad cholesterol and enjoy a healthier lifestyle, follow these healthy tips! GET MOVING! Getting regular exercise can make a huge difference in lowering cholesterol. Keeping fit and in shape may improve your cholesterol level. Do things you like to do and ALWAYS have fun with exercise. The best way to stick with an exercise program is to make sure you are enjoying yourself. Better yet, get a friend to join you! GET CHECKED! For adults, getting cholesterol levels checked on a regular basis is essential to long-term good health. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health recommend all adults over

8 Milk and broccoli are examples of healthy foods! Can you think of more examples? 20 years of age to have their cholesterol checked at least once every 5 years. Take your MULTIVITAMIN! A multivitamin/mineral supplement can possibly lower your risk for heart disease and stroke, which can be caused by high cholesterol. Look for a multivitamin that contains folic acid, vitamin B, and fish oil. GO FIBER RICH! Consume foods that are rich in fiber, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans. Fiber comes in two forms: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber appears to lower cholesterol significantly. Research has shown that consuming about 15 grams of soluble fiber a day can lower LDL cholesterol by 5 to 10 percent. STRESS LESS! To fight the cholesterol problem, managing stress is as essential as healthy eating and regular exercise. When you are anxious or stressed, you are more likely to neglect the actions that help lower cholesterol in the first place. So sit back and relax a little! Practice controlled breathing, meditate, go for a walk, read a book, play outside, stretch or hit the gym. GET THE LOW DOWN! Learn more from the American Heart Association s The Cholesterol Low Down at H8