GradeMy Respiratory System and Keeping it Safe

Grade 1 Activity 1

Objective Students will understand how breathing supplies oxygen to their bodies, the importance of oxygen in their bodies, and how the poisons in cigarette smoke can damage their lungs making it hard for them to breathe. Students will be able to identify one major poison in cigarette smoke.

Materials Needed Pink and brown crayons Sponge Jar of tar (molasses) Empty jar

Materials Provided Color Respiratory System diagram Student handouts (4): 1. My Respiratory System

3. Smoker’s Lungs

2. Healthy Lungs

4. My Drawing

Essential Academic Learning Requirements Fulfilled Health and Fitness Health Skills: 2.1 Understand simple lung function Influencing Factors: 2.2 Understand the harmful effects of cigarettes on the lungs. Science Life Science: 1.2 Identify the parts of the respiratory system

New Words Respiratory system, oxygen, tar, tobacco, lungs, windpipe, poison, cigarette (These words are in bold the first time they appear in the activity.)

Class Time 30 minutes

Teacher Preparation Read the Overview on Tobacco Facts and the Respiratory System. Sign and send home parent letter. Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department

Mary Bridge Childrens Hospital and Health Center

Grade 1 Activity 1

Step 1: Learn about your respiratory system. 1)

Distribute My Respiratory System handout.

2)

Use the color respiratory system diagram as a model for students.

3)

Ask students to: Follow with your finger as I describe how air enters your body: from the nose and mouth, down the windpipe, and into the lungs.

4)

Ask students to: Circle the new words on your respiratory system handout as you trace the path of air with your crayon (windpipe, lungs).

Step 2: Demonstrate the flow of air into the body. 1)

Ask students to: Gently pinch your nose closed so you take in air just through your mouth. Now gently cover your mouth and take in air just through your nose. Feel your windpipe, the tough cartilage at the front of your neck.

Step 3: Learn about oxygen. 1)

Tell students: The air you breathe is a mixture of different types of gases. We can’t see these gases. Oxygen is one of the gases in the air. Your body needs oxygen to stay alive. You take oxygen in when you breathe.

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department

Mary Bridge Childrens Hospital and Health Center

Grade 1

Step 4: Learn about cigarettes and the lungs. 1)

Activity 1

Tell students: If you breathe dirty or smoky air, it goes to your lungs. To keep your lungs healthy, make sure that only clean fresh air comes into your lungs. Cigarettes have many poisons in them. The smoke from cigarettes makes the air dirty and smelly. When people smoke, they breathe the poisons into their lungs.

2)

Ask students: Would you want the poisons from cigarettes in your lungs? Would you want to smoke a cigarette?

3)

Tell students: The poisons in cigarettes hurt your lungs. One of the poisons is tar. Tar is a brown sticky, ooey, gooey substance. It burns the throat and lungs and turns the lungs brown. Tar sticks to the lungs making it harder for the lungs to do their job.

Step 5: Demonstrate how tar can hurt your lungs. 1)

Gather materials: Jar of tar, empty jar and sponge. Moisten sponge with water.

2)

Gather the students around the demonstration area.

3)

Pour tar into the empty jar, showing how thick it is.

4)

Pour the tar onto the sponge.

5)

Tell students: This is like the tar in cigarettes. Tar soaks into your lungs. It turns your lungs brown. The tar eats away at your lungs. Smoking makes it hard for smokers to breath. It’s hard for smokers to do physical activities like running and skating.

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department

Mary Bridge Childrens Hospital and Health Center

Grade 1 Activity 1

6)

Ask the students: Would this sticky tar be easy to get out of your lungs? Do you want your lungs to look like this? What activities do you like to do? (Run, jump, play sports.) Would those things be difficult to do if you smoked? What is the name of the brown sticky poison in cigarettes? (Tar.)

Step 6: Learn through doing. 1) Distribute the following handouts:

“Healthy Lungs”, “Smoker’s Lungs”, and “My Drawing”

2) Ask students to: Color the healthy lungs pink. Color the unhealthy smokers lungs brown. Use the “My Drawing” handout to draw a picture of yourself doing a fun activity with your friends.

3)

Ask students to: Share your pictures. Tell us what you are doing with your friends.

4)

Tell students: Thank you for learning about how cigarettes are bad for your lungs. I’m happy that you want to have pink healthy lungs.

Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department

Mary Bridge Childrens Hospital and Health Center

My Respiratory System

Grade 1

Healthy Lungs

Grade 1

Color the healthy lungs pink.

Smoker’s Lungs

Grade 1

Color the smoker’s lungs brown.

My Drawing

Draw a picture of you and your friends doing your

favorite healthy activity.

Grade 1