How To Make A Heart Pump Model

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This week we covered the cardiovascular system.  We used quite a few resources to have some fun with our learning. We used flashcards to help learn the flow of blood to and from the heart, worked on activities to label the parts of the heart, used an app called TinyBop to review the heart and blood flow, and then completed a hands on activity to make a visual of how the heart pumps.

Supplies

Scissors

4 Clear Jars

Water

Blue and Red Food Coloring

Blue and Red Balloons (or any color that you have on hand)

4 Straws

Tape


Directions:

  1. Fill two jars with water. Add blue dye to one jar, and red dye to the other.
  2. Cut off the tip of the red balloon and stretch the opening of the balloon to fit over the jar with the red water.
  3. Cut off the tip of the blue balloon and stretch the opening of the balloon to fit over the jar with the blue water.
  4. Cut off the tip of the red balloon and stretch the opening of the balloon to fit over the empty jar.
  5. Cut off the tip of the blue balloon and stretch the opening of the balloon to fit over the empty jar.
  6. Using the scissors, pinch up the balloon and snip a small opening so one end of the straw can fit. Do this to each of the balloons.
  7. Using the jars with red balloons, this will act as our oxygenated blood, connect the straw to both via the slit in the balloons.
  8. Using the jars with blue balloons, this will act as our deoxygenated blood, connect the straw to both via the slit in the balloons.
  9. Now your heart pump is ready to use! Hold the straw into the dyed water and gently push down on the balloon. The causes a suction and the water travels through the straw and empties into the second jar.

It may take a few tries (as evidenced by the different balloons we used compared to our initial picture LOL), but it will work! Have fun learning about trial and error and perseverance!

Heart Unit Supplemental Worksheets and Activities:

To supplement our heart learning, I created these activities for us to review the heart’s structure and terminology. You can purchase your copy here: The Heart Unit

What’s included:

  • Cover page
  • Simplified Heart Facts Sheet
  • Label The Heart Anatomy Sheet: Blank worksheet and Answer key
  • Label The Heart Valves Blank worksheets and Answer Key
  • Trace and write vocabulary words in Print and Cursive to label the valves
  • Trace and Write Vocabulary words in Print and Cursive
  • Write your own fact cards on select cardio parts: right atrium, left atrium, right ventricle, left ventricle, aorta, vena cava, pulmonary arteries, and pulmonary veins.
  • Nomenclature cards featuring the main parts of the cardiovascular system.
  • Color by Number The Heart coloring sheet.
  • The Heart Crossword Puzzle Blank Copy and Answer Key
  • The Heart Word Matching and Answer Key
  • The Heart Word Search and Answer Key

Book, App and Video Links to study the Heart

Books to read about the human body:

We have the human body coloring book and I really love it! It has bite sized information for the kids to read while coloring, and it’s just a nice quiet time activity for the kids to do. We also have the Human Body lift the flap book from Usborne and that is definitely our favorite book for learning about the different parts of the body.


A fun app we use to “play” with the heart is called TinyBop: The Human Body. We are able to use it to label the valves, arteries, veins, and more. We also can see how the heart pumps. We made the heart beat faster by having the person run. This was also a great opportunity for us to count the heartbeats of a resting person and a person in motion. Really fun!

Here are links that we used to watch videos of the heart:

National Geo: Heart 101 https://youtu.be/GMBSU-2GK3E

Electrical Impulse https://youtu.be/lK32IfBw4hI

Hope you have fun learning about the heart! Tag us @playinquiremakelearn with your Heart Pump Model!

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*Adult Supervision Is Required For All Activities*