Valentine’s Day is all about sharing our hearts. So why not share a little about what makes them tick? As part of our integrated K-12 programming, 11th and 12th Grade Human Biology students designed and presented to third-grade students a five-part lesson on the human heart. While our younger students gained knowledge about human biology, the Upper School students shined in their roles as mentors sharing what they have learned.

Third graders rotated through five unique stations, where they teamed up with a group of juniors and seniors to learn about the human heart. One station even included a glistening red model of a heart, made entirely of jello! Now that’s a Valentine’s Day to remember!

Station One: Healthy Eating. Third graders made sushi and rice balls, and discussed how nutrition and a healthy diet help your cardiovascular system stay strong.

Station Two: Heart Bingo. Students earned prizes as they practiced using terms associated with the anatomy of the heart, nutrition and diet, and diseases of the heart.

Station Three: Model of the Heart. Students observed a model of the heart made with balloons and dyed water. They noticed that the heart has four chambers, and observed how the pumping of the pulmonary artery causes blood to travel from one side of the heart to the other, to the lungs, and back to the heart via the pulmonary vein.

Station Four: Exercise. Third graders compared their resting heart rates and blood pressure to those of the eleventh and twelfth graders. Students then completed jumping jacks and remeasured their heart rates and blood pressure. They had to make a hypothesis before the experiment to predict what would happen.

Station Five: Animal’s Heart Rates. Students were given about 20 different mammals and had to arrange the animals in order from lowest to highest resting heart rate. They then answered questions about body size and heart rate.

“This activity is so fun to do on Valentine’s Day because it allows seniors to demonstrate what they have learned to the Lower School students,” commented Science Teacher Mary Churchill. “The third graders asked such great questions and really had the Human Biology students working hard to keep the lessons interesting.”