‘Hearts’, ‘intestines’, ‘lungs’, ‘brains’, ‘muscles’ and ‘bones’ are common vocabulary in the Year 3 and 4 classrooms for this Unit of Inquiry. Our Central Idea that we are inquiring into is: The human body is made up of connected systems that enable us to live a healthy life. Our Lines of Inquiry for this unit are:

–       Connected systems of the human body

–       Caring for our bodies

–       Body responses to physical activity

The provocation for our first Unit of Inquiry was juicy one! The boys walked into a classroom of brains, bones, liver, kidneys and a tongue. We conducted a ‘See. Think. Wonder.’ as we observed, felt and even smelt these body parts. It was a learning experience to remember and resulted in some very engaged boys wanting to know more about the human body.

After breaking apart our central Idea to make it more meaningful for us we began exploring the different systems of the body, starting with the nervous system. We formulated some ‘Open’ and ‘Challenging’ questions in our Library time and we were able to put our brains to work and find out more about this system. We read articles and watched some videos. We then had a chance to share some of our findings.

These research and communication skills were then put into practise as we formed interest groups around particular body systems that the boys wanted to inquire into. These groups were mixed between Year 3 and 4 students and covered the respiratory, circulatory, digestive, muscular and skeletal systems. Each group formulated questions, assigned roles within the group and worked collaboratively to become experts about their particular system. They were able to share evidence of their inquiry through an informative poster. Each group then presented their system to the class, Exhibition style. The boys soon started to make some pretty strong connections between the systems and how they function together.

These inquiry and collaboration skills will continue to be developed and strengthened throughout the remainder of the unit as we explore how the body responds to physical activity and the responsibilities we have to care for our bodies.

Ms Tonkin and Mr Pollard – Stage 2 Teachers