The Circulatory System

INTRODUCTION
Are you ready for the ride of your life? Open wide we’re going on one of the wildest rollercoasters going. It has loop da loops. It has hairpin turns. It also lasts a lot longer and costs a lot less than the the rides we find at Six Flags.
Strap on your helmets. Fasten your seat belts. You are about to take a fantastic ride throughout the human body, your body. The ride we’re taking is one through your transportation or circulatory system. It’ll take us through arteries, capillaries, through the veins, the heart, the lungs, and then, we’re ready for another trip.

The heart holds a near and dear spot in our society. Every February, millions of Americans flock to card stores and flower shops to buy a little something for their valentine. The red heart has become a symbol of love and Valentine’s Day . The Ancient Greeks even believed the human heart harbored a tiny flame that heated the body. They may have understood the significance of the heart without a proper understanding of its function, but our favorite did, Dracula. The Dracula we know today is fiction, but the character understood that the heart is a muscle that pumps our blood. It’s time to get on board. We’re off.

The Circulatory System
First, we need to know where we’re going. We’ll step into the main station, the heart. As we shoot out of the station, where do we go? What are we traveling in? We’re seated in oxygen rich blood. Track and label our route on a body outline, and click here for the ride.

The Heart
The heart is the Grand Central Station of your body. It’s a terminal for the oxygen rich and the oxygen poor blood, and the muscle that keeps that blood flowing. What are the vital parts to this station, to your heart? Print and label them on your diagram. How hard does your heart have to work: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, of your whole life?

Let’s check our heart beats and pulse.
The Beating of your Heart
• How many times has your heart beat in your life so far?
• How many times has it beat in your parents’ or grandparents’ lives?

Your Pulse
• Are you relaxed? Find your pulse. Count the number of pulses in a fifteen second period. Multiply by four. Now, jump and down for a minute, run up and down some stairs, or do something physical, and repeat the process to check your pulse. Check each pulse rate against the facts. Remember the higher the pulse, the harder your heart is working, and we don’t want it overworked, but we’ll get to heart health later.
• Try taking your pulse for an entire day. Take your pulse each hour, and note what you’re doing at the time. Compare and contrast the different pulse rates. What do you think accounts for the differences and similarities?

HEART HEALTH
Think twice about that bag of chips. Sitting in front of the TV on a beautiful day, again? We may want to reconsider some of our habits and behaviors. We need to insure that we have a strong, healthy heart throughout our entire lives. It comes down to three important points: a healthy diet, regular exercise, and keeping our heart clean and drug free. In this next part, we want to create a Healthy Heart pamphlet.

Our project can be a fold-out brochure, or it can be a multi-media presentation. Use this healthy site as a source of information. Concentrate on our three important points. Tell why. Support your statements with facts and a convincing argument. What can happen if we’re unhealthy? You also may want to use illustrations that we’ve seen at other sites we’ve been to, or ones that you create yourself. When you’re finished, you may want to write a letter to someone you care about, and give them your brochure.

What else can you do?!? Try shootin’ some hoops, or jumping Rope. Take your pick:

Use information you find at these two sites for your Healthy Heart project, too.

THE END OF THE RIDE
Well, the ride is, unfortunately, over, and it’s time to get off. Your hair is a mess and it’s time to go check out our photo. We had a quite a trip. We had a first hand look at our heart, and the amazing job it does: no breaks, no vacations, how important our circulatory system is, and the functions of its parts. We also know how vital it is to keep this system healthy and strong.

Let’s reflect a little bit, and build a rollercoaster of our own. Write a one page journal comparing a successful rollercoaster to a strong and healthy heart and circulatory system.