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An Apple a Day, Keeps the Doctor Away
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes! Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes! Just like the nursery rhyme but much, much deeper, Grade 4 is now exploring body systems! Our central idea, The Interdependence between Organs and Body Systems Contribute to our Overall Health, focuses student inquiry into three main concepts:Organs and body systems and how they work (function), How organs and body systems are interdependent (connection), and Conditions that impact the health of body systems (causation).
Focus on Six Vital Body Systems
In grade 4 we are focusing on 6 body systems: Circulatory, Respiratory, Digestive, Skeletal, Muscular, and Nervous. As you can imagine there is a massive amount of information contained in each system. To what depth are students expected to inquire? To address this, students have chosen a body system to focus on and will be working in small groups.
This being our final unit of the year, students are expected to utilize the many skills that they have acquired and/or honed throughout the year (research, independent work habits note taking, etc…) . Using the lines of inquiry as guidelines, they will research and seek to gain understanding of their body system and then create a project to teach the rest of the class about it.
The depth of their research and quest for knowledge about their chosen body systems largely depends on individual motivation and initiative (as long as basic questions from the lines of inquiry are being answered). Be sure to ask a 4th grader to share with you what they have learned and how to stay healthy.
Learn more about the human body and health education resources on platforms like KidsHealth.org, and explore interactive anatomy tools on websites like Innerbody.com.
