Seth's Body

Feb. 2014

Seth spent the month of February learning about his body during co-op. He made this Seth-sized model of the inside of his body that he got to bring home when it was all done. His favorite part was the large intestines (of course). 

Five Senses Song

(to the tune of Where is Thumbkin?)

Five senses, five senses. 

(hold up five fingers)

I have them. I have them. 

(point to yourself)

Seeing, hearing, smelling,

tasting and touching 

(point to each part of your body)

I have five. Five senses.

(hold up five fingers)

Smell

Song: Five Senses Song, plus...this is a tough one--if you have anything good, let me know!  Here's a rhyme I found. You can substitute any smell for the first line:

Rhyme:

The toast is burning!

How do I know?

My nose told my brain,

So it must be so.

Books: Smelling by Robin Nelson, My Five Senses by Aliki
Craft: scent cards
Outside: see if you can find different smells outside
Snack: anything with a strong scent--strawberries, bananas, chocolate, tomatoes, etc.

Supplies needed:

• a fridge and spice cupboard full of interesting smells (this should be an easy one!)
• notecards
• paintbrush
• liquids with strong smells to paint with: almond/lemon extract, vanilla, Tabasco, soy sauce, Kool-Aid mixed with water, etc.

Being with the songs, ending with Five Senses Song.  Explain that today we're going to learn about our sense of smelling.  Read Smelling, then talk about how we use our noses to smell.

Head to the kitchen and find some fun things to smell in the fridge (you can have them close their eyes if you'd like to have them guess).  After they've tried a few, have them plug their noses and then try to smell.  We can't smell without our noses!

Other fun things to smell around the house: spice cupboard, laundry detergent, candles, air fresheners, perfume, deodorant, lotions, toothpaste--go on a scent hunt!  See what you can find that smells good or that smells bad.  

Head back to the table and give them some notecards and a paintbrush.  Put a small amount of liquid in individual bowls, then let them paint away!  Watch them carefully with Tabasco--make sure they don't touch their skin with the sauce.

Once they're done, head outside for another scent hunt.  Tell why you're grateful for your nose and what you like to smell with it!

Additional ideas:

• have them try to TASTE with their nose plugged.  Explain that our nose and our tongue work together to taste things.  If we can't smell, we can't taste very well.  Works great for yucky medicine!

Taste

Song: songs about eating/food (Apples & Bananas, Who Stole the Cookies, etc.) plus Five Senses Song
Books: Tasting by Robin Nelson, My Five Senses  by Aliki, books about food (Very Hungry Caterpillar)
Craft: pudding painting!
Outside: not much to taste outside (unless you have a garden), but you can eat snacks outside!
Snack: lots of different tastes--sweet, salty, sour, bitter & spicy (if you're feeling cruel)

Supplies needed:

• food for tasting: sweet (chocolate or fruit), sour (lemon or sour candy), salty (pretzels or chips), spicy (salsa), bitter (unsweetened cocoa powder)
• plate & spoon with various things to taste (ketchup, jelly, syrup, etc.)
• pudding & something to paint on (butcher paper or similar)

Begin by singing some songs, ending with the Five Senses Song.  Explain that today we're going to learn about our sense of taste.  

Read Tasting and then look at your tongues (you can have a mirror ready or just look at each others' tongues).  Point out the bumps, explaining that those are taste buds.  Taste buds tell us what things taste like.

Tell them that now we're going to use our tongues to taste some different foods.  Have them close their eyes, then give them the food you've prepared (salty, sweet, sour, bitter & spicy--try not to end with bitter).  See if they can tell you what it tastes like.  Help them learn the descriptive words above.

Prepare the plate with various things to taste.  Give them a spoon and let them taste things.  See if they can tell you if it's sweet/sour, salty, etc.

Pudding painting time!  Be prepared for a big mess--this usually turns into a body painting session.  Have them tell you what the pudding tastes like.

After you clean up, head outside for a picnic of lots of tasty food.  Tell why you're grateful for your sense of taste (and tell what your favorite things to taste are!).  End by reading some fun books about food/tasting.

Touch

Song: Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes (any song where they have to touch something), Five Senses Song
Books: books with textured pages (usually for infants)
Craft: touch plate (paper plate with different things to touch)
Outside: find things that are hard/soft, smooth/rough, etc.
Snack: warm/cold food, hard/soft food

Supplies needed:

• paper plate & pieces to glue on (sandpaper, silk, cotton balls, tin foil, dried leaves, rice, etc.)
• glue--I'd go with white Elmer's glue here.  Let them use a Q-tip to spread it on.
• sandpaper, silk, ice, jar of warm water (or something else warm), rock & cotton ball, sticky tack or Silly Putty, bowl of rice, bowl of flour--basically anything with an interesting texture.
• box to put things in (so the child can't see it), or a blindfold
• feather (or another soft object)

Begin by singing songs, ending with Five Senses Song.  Tell them that today we're going to learn about our sense of touch.  Explain that you were using your hands to touch parts of your body.

Read Touching.  Tell them that we use our skin to feel, or touch.  Have them look closely at their skin.  What do you see?  Look at your fingertips.  Tell them that our fingers are the best at feeling things, but that all of our body can feel things.  

Tell your child to close his/her eyes. Take a feather and tickle various places on his/her body (back of the neck, nose, knees, belly, ears).  Ask if they can feel the feather touching them.  Then tickle their hair.  Can you feel the feather on your hair?  No, because you feel with your skin, not your hair!

Bring out the box.  Put one of the objects inside without them seeing.  Have them tell you what they feel.  Is it hard or soft?  Smooth or rough?  Warm or cold?  See if they can guess what it is. Remind them that they are touching with their skin.

Craft time!  Give them a paper plate and all the sensory pieces you feel like letting them glue.  Give them a Q-tip (or paintbrush) and a small amount of glue.  Tell them to glue whatever they want on their touch plate. As they select pieces, have them tell you what they feel like.  

While their plate is drying, head outside.  See if you can find something hard/soft, warm/cold, smooth/rough, etc.  If it's cool enough outside, you can put gloves on and see if you can still feel things as well.  

Come back inside for a snack (have them tell you if it's hard/soft, warm/cold, smooth/rough, etc.) and to read some books.

Hearing

Songs: My Heavenly Father Loves Me (second verse especially); Listen, Listen; Five Senses Song
Books: anything that makes noise (books with buttons), Hearing by Robin Nelson
Craft: make shakers--use baby jars & put different things inside
Outside: close eyes, listen to noises outside
Snack: anything that makes noise--chips, popcorn, Pop Rocks, cheese curds

Supplies needed:

• baby food jars & things to put inside (seeds, marbles, rice, beans, etc.)
• music (classical or children's is best)

Start with the songs (do some actions to emphasize the hearing sense).  End with Five Senses Song.  Explain that today we're going to learn about our sense of hearing.  Read Hearing.

Have them find their ears.  Explain that we use our ears to hear.  Let them look at your ears.  Explain why they should never put things in their ears--it can hurt them and make it so we can't hear anymore.  

What can we do with our ears?  We can hear talking and whispering (whisper in your child's ear--have them whisper back).  We can hear sounds in the house (listen quietly for a minute--tell what you heard).  We can hear music (put on a song and sing & dance along).

Your ears also tell you if something is LOUD or SOFT.  Use the music again--play some loud, some soft.  Have your child tell you which is which.  Explain that too much loud noise can hurt our ears--we need to take good care of them.  Our ears also tell us if something is HIGH or LOW.  Make some high noises (birds tweeting, baby talk, siren) and some low noises (cow mooing, truck motor, lion roaring).  

Now you can make your shakers.  Give them several empty jars and several different objects to put inside.  Let them do whatever they want, but tell them to leave some empty room so it can shake. Make sure to close the lids tightly.  Once they have them made, listen to each shaker.  Is is loud, or soft?  High or low?  Turn the music back on and use the shakers to dance & make music.

Head outside & use your ears to listen.  What do you hear?  Birds? Cars? People?  Try closing your eyes and listening.  Can you hear better now?  

Tell them to cover their ears, then tell them something.  Can they hear you?  Would it be hard to not be able to hear?  Explain that some people's ears don't work, so they use sign language to 'talk.'  Teach a few signs if you know any (mom, dad, more, eat, love).  

Come back in for a snack--listen as you eat!  What do you hear?  Read some books--what do you hear?

Sight

Songs: Look Around the Room/World With Me; Five Senses Song; Popcorn Popping
Books: I Spy, Where's Waldo? Martin Handford, The Eye Book  by Theo. LeSieg (Dr. Seuss),
           Seeing  by Robin Nelson
Craft: draw pictures of things you see outside
Outside: Play 'I Spy', sing  'Look Around the World With Me', find colors
Snack: anything with lots of color--carrots (good for eyesight!), craisins, grapes, apples, etc.

Supplies needed:

• paper and markers/crayons for coloring
• family pictures
• blindfold

Begin with singing some of the songs, ending with Five Senses Song.  Explain that today we're going to talk about our sense of sight.  Read Seeing. 

Explain that we see with our eyes--this is called sight.  Let your child look closely at your eyes.  With our eyes we see colors (see how many colors you can find).  With our eyes we read books (you can read some books now or wait until later).  With our eyes we see the people we love (look at family pictures and identify everyone).

What would it be like if we didn't have sight?  Put on a blindfold, then sing 'Look Around the Room' again.  Ask them why they can't see what you see.  Have them try to pick something up off the floor.  Is it hard to do it without sight?  Tell why you are grateful for your sight.

Take paper & colors outside.  Draw two eyes in the middle of the paper, then let your child illustrate (or dictate to you what to draw) what he/she sees outside.  Play 'I Spy', sing 'Look Around the World With Me,' and see how many colors you can see outside.  If you feel like it, you can whip out the blindfold again, or just have your child close his/her eyes.  Tell your child how grateful you are for the beautiful world and for eyes to see it with.

Additional ideas:

• our eyes see shapes--anything to do with finding/drawing shapes

My Insides

(He placed and glued the organs himself--I love how his brain is exploding out of his skull...)

This is a good follow up to the lessons on the body here and here.

Songs: My Hands; Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes; I Wiggle; any songs about the brain, heart, etc.
Books: How Your Body Works: A Good Look Inside Your Insides by David Stewart
            How Your Body Works  by Rebecca Weber
            any of the books from the previous two lessons about the body
Craft: tracing of your child's body with major organs added
Outside: play games using brain, heart, lungs
Snack: things that are good for our bodies (fruit, veggies, grains)

Supplies needed:

• piece of paper large enough to trace your child's body
• scissors
• pieces of paper cut out into shapes of brain, heart, lungs, stomach 
• glue (make sure it's kid friendly!)

Begin by singing songs about your body.  Then trace your child and cut the body out.  Lay out the pieces of paper you've cut out for the organs.  Have your child pick one and see if he/she can figure out where it goes.  Give hints if necessary.  Once they've figured it out, have them glue it in place.  After each one, explain what they do and do an activity that corresponds.  For example:

• Brain--thinks, tells our bodies what to do.  Activity: puzzle
• Heart--pumps the blood.  Activity: feel your heartbeat, then jump up & down for 1 minute and feel again
• Lungs--breath in oxygen.  Activity: blow up a balloon, explain how lungs are like a balloon
• Stomach--digests food.  Activity: snack time!

Hang up the completed poster next to your body and skeleton posters.  Then head outside and play some games with your brain (I Spy) your heart (running, jumping, etc.) and your lungs (bubbles). End by reading some books about the body.

Additional ideas:

• find a kids' doctor kit.  Have them use the stethoscope to listen to your heart & lungs
• show how the bones in their skeletons protect these organs

Skeleton!

This is a good follow up to the lesson on the body here.

Songs: Ghost of John, Dry Bones (this works best if you tickle them while singing)
Books: The Skeletal System  by Caroline Arnold (I just used this for the pictures--it's too advanced)
            Bones & Muscles  by Susan LeVert (same as above--used for pictures)
            Bend and Stretch  by Pamela Hill Nettleton
            You Can't See Your Bones With Binoculars  by Harriet Ziefert
Craft: life-size skeleton of your child
Outside: play 'what would happen if you didn't have bones in your ______'

Supplies needed:

• piece of paper large enough to trace your child
• scissors
• black/silver markers or crayons

Start with the songs, then show a picture of a skeleton (or toy skeleton if you have one).  Explain what bones do for our bodies and what would happen if you didn't have any bones (if you can get the clip from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets when Lockhart makes his bones disappear, that's a great visual).

Trace your child on the paper, then cut it out.  As you draw (use those artistic skills!) the bones and label them, have your child feel the bones in their bodies.  You can even show pictures of x-rays from that area (skulls, ribs, etc.).

Main bones to label:

• skull
• spine
• ribs
• pelvis

Extras (these can just be 'leg bones' or 'arm bones' if you don't care about technical terms):

• sternum (middle of chest)
• humerus (upper arm)
• ulna (pinky side of lower arm)
• radius (thumb side of lower arm)
• femur (upper leg)
• tibia (front lower leg)
• fibia (back lower leg)

Once your bones are labeled, hang the poster next to the body poster from the previous lesson.  See how they match up.

Go outside and play a game where you imagine what would happen if you didn't have bones in your right leg, or left arm, or neck, etc.  See what you can and can't do without your bones.

Come back in for a snack--make sure you have some milk to build those strong bones!  While you eat you can read books about the skeleton (both nonfiction and some fun skeleton books).

Other possible topics:

• If there's a baby in the home, have your child feel its soft spot (carefully) and explain that the baby's bones are still growing
• Show a video of someone getting a cast put on (youtube has lots)
• Do a demonstration using blocks (or something else with good support) to hold up a piece of fabric.  Then try to hold the fabric up using rubber bands.  The cloth is our skin--without support we would just be a puddle!

My Body

Songs: My Hands; Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes
Books: Horns to Toes and In Between by Sandra Boynton
            God Made Me by Joanna Bicknell
            Belly Button Book! by Sandra Boynton
            The Eye Book by Theo. Lesieg (Dr. Seuss)
Craft: tracing of child with parts labeled
Outside: use each part of your body to do something (run, clap, climb, sing)

Supplies needed:

• paper big enough to lay your child on and trace
• scissors
• crayons, markers, etc.

This is a very simple lesson.  Begin by singing the songs together or playing games like 'touch your bellybutton'. Then have the child lay on a large piece of paper and trace their bodies.  If you're really feeling ambitious, you can even cut the whole thing out.

Let the child help you label & color each body part.  Do one at a time.  As you label, have them tell you some things you can do with that body part (and do them!).

Basic body parts:

• head
• arms
• hands
• fingers
• feet
• legs
• toes
• tummy
• eyes
• ears
• mouth
• nose

Extras:

• neck
• hair
• elbows
• shoulders
• knees
• chest

After you're done, head outside and let your child use his/her body however he/she wants.  Encourage them to use all the parts of the body you discussed ('Can you pick up the flower with your fingers? Can you smell it with your nose?  See it with your eyes?').

Once they've gotten their energy out, read some books about the body.

Additional ideas/discussions:

• do animals have bodies? do bugs? do plants?
• Heavenly Father made my body/has a body
• how do I take care of my body? (eat good food, exercise, wash hands, get good sleep, etc.)
• what if you didn't have ____? (arms/fingers/legs/eyes, etc.)
• play Cootie Bug (have bodies, eyes, legs, heads)