Exploring Digestion
(Science and Nutrition -5th grade -  Two 90 minute classes)

Key Points:  Students will investigate what happens with food once we eat it.  The digestive system has five stages.  Experiments will be done to illustrate to the students what happens in each stage.

Background Information:  Digestion occurs after we have a snack or a meal.  It is a process that allows the body to use the nutrients in food for fuel, growth, and maintenance.  The first stage in the digestion process involves chewing and so the first stage begins in the mouth.  The second stage occurs when bacteria mixes with the food in the mouth.  The third stage happens when food has been swallowed and travels to the esophagus.  The stomach is the fourth stage when muscles blend the food and acid is added.  The final stage we will look at involves the large intestine when water and salt are removed from leftover food. 

QCC Objectives:  Nutrition:  20, 22    Science:  1, 3, 4, 21, 22

Behavioral Objectives: 
Cognitive: 
The student will be able to name the parts of the digestive system.  (Knowledge)
The student will be able to describe the digestive process.  (Comprehension)
The student will experiment with food and the digestive process.  (Application) 
The student will examine the stages of the digestive process.  (Analysis)
The student will create their own diagram of the digestive process.  (Synthesis)
The student will evaluate the importance of each stage.  (Evaluation)
Affective:
The student will listen closely to instructions.  (Receiving)
The student willingly participates in the experiments.  (Responding)

Focusing Event:  The teacher will ask the students to raise their hands and give suggestions as to what happens to food once it enters the body.  The teacher will read aloud to the class the book What Happens to a Hamburger by Paul Showers.

Procedures:  After the teacher shares the book with the class, he or she should explain to the class that digestion occurs after we eat something.  The process of digestion should be discussed and it should be explained that the digestive process enables the body to use nutrients from food for fuel, growth, and maintenance.  The teacher will then provide each student with a copy of a Digestion Experiments Record Sheet.  The students will be asked to explore the digestion process by participating in several experiments. 

Materials/Media/Technology:
Digestion Experiments Record Sheet for each student
pencils
What Happens to a Hamburger by Paul Showers
Experiment Procedure sheet
soda crackers
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