Finding Out, then Formulating Questions to Sort Out

Fourth Graders are finishing up a Who We Are unit that focuses on the systems of the human body. Here are some questions they generated after some finding out. See if your fourth grader knows any answers! She should. (If not, encourage her to practice her research skills!)

Questions about the respiratory system are above. Some questions are about form, some are about function, and some are about responsibility. The concepts we emphasized during the unit were function, connection and responsibility.

The questions above are about the digestive system. When many of the children first describe the function of the digestive system, they conflate it with the excretory system and mention stuff going out but forget the point: that nutrients remain in the body! Check your fourth graders understanding. Please emphasize this point if necessary.

We emphasized that the purpose of the circulatory system is to bring oxygen to the cells of the body. However, the fourth graders should know that the blood is like a highway. Can they name other things the blood carries besides oxygen? Those things connect the circulatory system to the excretory system, the immune system, the digestive system, and the endocrine system. Please put them on the spot!