Allen Elementary
Plymouth-Canton Community Schools
Overview 
We chose to focus on the human circulatory system for our unit. The Plymouth-Canton Community School District's science curriculum states that the human body is to be taught in the 5th grade. The subject matter that is included under the topic of the human body consists of cells, the skeletal system, the digestive system, the circulatory system, as well as, how these systems work together in the body.
The circulatory system is, of course, one of the most important systems in the human body. We chose to introduce it first to the students because of the importance of the system to maintain life. The technology tools available to our students were easily integrated into students' learning and understanding of the circulatory system.
Technology Tools
During the unit, we integrated technology into instruction, student exploration, and assessment.
Some tools we used include:
- Video equipment
- Digital cameras
- PC computers
- The Internet
- Microsoft Word
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Excel
- Calculators
- Stop watches
- Altiris Vision
Besides the lessons focused on the use of technology, our unit also incorporated hands-on lessons to tie the unit together and to help the students to make the learning connections necessary to comprehend the material presented.
Although technology is important to integrate into the curriculum, too much could be overwhelming to students and teachers.
Lesson Overviews
Lesson 1- Introduction to the Circulatory System- Students took guided notes while viewing a video on the circulatory system.
Lesson 2- Blood Web Hunt- Students explored different web sites to learn about the components of blood.
Lesson 3- Making Blood- As a class, we continued to explore the components of blood by concocting our own version of "candy" blood.
Lesson 4- Introduction to the Human Heart- Students made observations from images of the human heart and assessed their observations after reading and exploring a web site.
Lesson 5- Mrs. Moore's Question- Students wrote a letter to the principal in response to a question she had asked about the heart and how it works.
Lesson 6- The Journey of a Red Blood Cell- Students traveled through a large model to imitate the journey of a red blood cell in the human body.
Lesson 7- The Racing Heart- Students completed an experiment on their pulse rates before and after physical activity and graphed their data on Microsoft Excel.
Lesson 8- PowerPoint Assessment- Students individually completed a presentation with PowerPoint by following a teacher created rubric.
Lesson 9- Written Assessment- Students individually took a traditional written assessment as another way of assessing their learning.