1. “5-Minute Prep” for Human Body Systems of the Body Digestive
DE Science Elementary
“5-Minute Prep” for Human Body Systems of the Body Digestive

2. Digestive System – The Big Ideas
The digestive system breaks down food for energy and nutrients.
The mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine and large intestine are the major parts of the digestive system.
Food is chewed and mixes with saliva in the mouth which begins the process of digestion.
Food and liquid travel from the mouth through the esophagus and into the stomach.
Through churning and mixing with enzymes food is broken down in the stomach.

3. Digestive System – Prior Knowledge
Students will have knowledge of some systems of the body prior to this study. It will be helpful for students to use the FUN-damental to review the Digestive System. It will also help if they are able to:
Explain that the body is made up of systems.
Name some parts of the human body.

4. Digestive System – Common Misconceptions
Systems operate in isolation of each other.
Reality: No part of the human body works alone. Each system works in conjunction with the other parts of the body.
The stomach is located at or below the belt area.
Reality: The stomach is located at the bottom of the chest just below the esophagus.

5. Digestive System – Using DE Science Content
When you close this presentation, you can review the following recommended resources for the Digestive System.
Reading Passage: A Day in Your Digestive System
Reading Passage: Are You Nuts?
eBook: Getting Rid of Waste
Video Segment: The Digestive System
Use the PowerPoint version of this presentation for hyperlinks to these resources or you can get to them through the browser or search feature.

6. Digestive System – Instructional Ideas
Read the reading passage, Pizza Delivery!
Give each group of three students two jars.
One jar should contain grated potatoes and one jar should contain chopped potatoes.
Groups should place water in the jars, covering the potatoes, and place the lids on the jars.
Students can take turns shaking the jars for about minutes.
Discuss what is happening with the potatoes and compare this to the breakdown of food in the stomach.

7. Digestive System – Instructional Ideas
Watch the Video Segment, The Digestive System.
Then, place students into groups of 4.
Each group will explain the process of digestion by sitting in a circle and taking turns naming the steps.
The first student will start and tell a sentence about the first step.
The next student will add a sentence about the next step and so on.
At the end, have a class discussion about the steps to check for the accuracy of each group’s explanation.

8. Additional Information:
State Standards:
If you wish to review your state standards regarding the Digestive System, click here to get to the curriculum standards search feature of DES.
You can click on any standard to see what resources are available to teach it.
Additional Information:
For additional content, check the Extend section within the concept.