Did you know that the human body is made up of around 30 trillion cells? From the internal systems that keep us going to the senses that help us explore the world, the human body is full of exciting information to discover. In this post, we’ll share a roundup of ideas for a human body lesson plan or unit study. Here, you’ll find fun facts for kids about the human body and explore the different ways that bodies can move and experience the world. We’ve also got a collection of books, crafts, and curriculum resources to support a unit study or lesson plan about the human body. Let’s start learning about the human body by exploring some of the body’s internal systems!
About the Human Body
The human body is truly amazing! The human body is made up of different systems, each with its own special job. The systems also work together to help meet the body’s needs.
Skeletal and Muscular Systems
- We’ll start with our body’s framework: the skeletal system. The skeletal system includes all the bones inside the body, and is responsible for creating our body’s general shape. The adult skeleton has over 200 bones! The longest and strongest bone in the human body is the femur (the long bone in your thigh). In contrast, the smallest bone in the human body is a tiny bone in your inner ear called the stapes.
- Next, the muscular system includes all the muscles throughout the body. Most adult bodies have over 600 muscles. “Skeletal muscles” are responsible for helping us move the various parts of our body. These muscles work together with our bones to make our bodies strong and flexible. Other muscles help with vital body functions, like the cardiac muscle that makes our heart pump blood. Did you know that your tongue is made up of a group of extremely flexible muscles?
Respiratory and Circulatory Systems
- The respiratory system is all about breathing. This system, which includes the nose, mouth, windpipe, and lungs, helps us take in oxygen and get rid of waste gases like carbon dioxide. Most humans breathe about 20,000 times each day!
- We also have a circulatory system, which is like a network of roads inside us. This system carries blood throughout our bodies, delivering oxygen and nutrients to our organs and muscles. The circulatory system is also important for fighting illnesses in the human body.
Digestive and Nervous Systems
- Our digestive system takes care of turning the food we eat into energy. Some major parts of this system are the mouth, esophagus, stomach, and intestines. The digestive system breaks down food into smaller pieces so our bodies can use the nutrients to grow and stay healthy.
- Finally, the nervous system is like our body’s control center. This system includes our brain, which helps us think and remember things. It also includes our nerves, which carry messages to and from different parts of our body. Our nervous system helps us take in information from our senses and understand what that information is telling us. The nervous system helps coordinate the actions of all the other human body systems, making everything work together seamlessly.
Learning About the Human Body: Fun Facts for Kids
- Your brain generates the same amount of electricity it would take to power a small light bulb.
- Sneezes can travel up to 100 miles per hour!
- Your skin is your body’s largest organ and also acts as a shield against germs.
- Humans are the only animals that shed tears when they’re sad.
- A human’s small intestine can be as long as 22 feet!
- Your body produces enough saliva to fill two swimming pools every year.
- Even though they have very different textures, nails and hair are made of the same material, called keratin. Fingernails grow faster than toenails.
- The human nose can remember thousands of different scents.
- Your heart beats about 100,000 times a day, pumping blood all around your body.
- If you stretched out all your blood vessels end-to-end, they could circle the Earth!
Human Body Curriculum Resources
Young learners often love learning about the human body. If you work with young children, you likely have many things on hand to help support an exploration of the human body. Fine motor activities can highlight the way that bones and muscles work together to complete a task. Activities that focus on food preparation make a great springboard for conversations about digestion and our senses. Even materials as simple as rocks can help children explore the world through their senses! If you’re looking to build a lesson plan or unit study about the human body, here are a few ideas you may find useful.
Learning About the Human Body: Trillium Resources
- Human Body Mini Unit This printable pack includes eleven activities geared toward the older children in a primary class, including a life size “organ map” activity. This pack also has three-part cards for human internal organs, a body parts bingo game, and a printable nonfiction text.
- Inside My Body Preschool Pack With ten human-body-themed early math, early literacy, and fine motor activities, this pack makes a great supplement to a Human Body unit. Check out how @montessoriinspredco used the booklet papers on watercolor paper!
Books, Materials, and Printables About the Human Body
- Hear Your Heart by Paul Showers gives an accurate, child-friendly description of the circulatory system. To further demonstrate this concept, this book might be nice to include on the shelf accompanied by a stethoscope.
- Look Inside Your Body by Louie Stowell is an interactive lift-the-flap book, including lots of questions and answers about the function of the body’s various organs and systems.
- Human X-rays These transparent x-ray reproductions from Montessori Services are especially fun to use on a light table but also work well without a light source. With enough table or floor space, children can even assemble the x-rays into a complete 5′ 6″ skeleton!
- Skeleton Three-Part Cards To support an introduction to skeleton vocabulary, this set from Welcome to Mommyhood features bones in twelve areas of the body.
- Five Senses Sorting Activity + Three-Part Cards This printable pack from I Believe in Montessori includes 25 cards for sorting (five cards for each sense). Cards have full-color, realistic illustrations.
- My Body Unit from Every Star is Different shares a range of ideas and printables including spelling and vocabulary, counting, body systems and medical instruments.
Human Body Crafts and Hands-On Activities
- Life Size Body Map Activity From Life with Moore Learning. This is a great life-size collage activity to illustrate the locations of our internal organs.
- Body Part Labeling Activity From Mrs. Plemons’ Kindergarten. This post has lots of ideas for engaging, hands-on activities to help young students learn about the human body. Also, note the suggestion for writing/journaling about skeletons on black paper!
- Human Body Unit Study This post from MOMtessoriLife has a very thorough roundup of activities for studying the various systems of the body, including the outer body; the skeletal, muscular, nervous, circulatory, respiratory, and immune systems; and the five senses.
- Pumping Heart Model This activity from Team Cartwright uses simple items (that you likely have in your classroom already) to show how a human heart pumps blood. The author says she was able to put this model together in less than 20 minutes!
- Interactive Lung Model Hello Wonderful shares instructions for putting together this simple, interactive lung model, as well as a script to use when explaining the model and a video of the model in action.
- Human Body Shelf Setup Most of the materials and activities on this lovely Montessori homeschool shelf from Our Monte Stories would be great in a classroom setting as well. (Check out the “human bodies” highlight in their stories for lots of detail about the materials on this shelf.)
Holly Earnest is a content writer on the Trillium team. After eight years in the classroom and another 2.5 as a center director, Holly transitioned from full-time campus life to focus on supporting Montessori educators and caring for family. She is AMS-credentialed at the primary level, and enjoys coaching Montessori guides, creating Montessori training materials, and presenting at Montessori conferences.