Year 4 explore the human skeleton

At the start of term, we enjoyed working in groups to draw what we thought the human skeleton looked like. However, the results were quite amusing as the poor skeletons looked somewhat mismatched and seemed to be missing many of the major bones! Since then, our knowledge has greatly improved and we are now able to explain where different bones are found, giving their scientific names. We also understand the different functions of the human skeleton.

“Did you know the skull is made up of facial bones, the cranium and mandible?” Scarlett F

“The clavicle is the scientific name for the collar bone.” Alexandra D

“The humerus is the bone in your upper arm and the femur is the bone in your upper leg.” Isla Mc

“The skeleton gives support to keep us stable, it allows us to move and also gives us protection. For example, the rib cage protects the heart and lungs.” Harry W

This week, we discovered that not all animals have an endoskeleton like us (a skeleton on the inside of their body). Many creatures have an exoskeleton, or external skeleton, that supports and protects their bodies from the outside. In fact, we learnt that some animals have no bones or shell at all. They are called hydrostatic because they are supported only by fluid and muscles. Hydro means "water" so being hydrostatic means that the skeleton is fluid-filled. With our new knowledge, we started to reflect on the pros and cons of different types of skeletons. As some of our year group have recently discovered, endoskeletons do take a long time to heal if damaged!

We are now looking forward to planning our own science investigations related to bones and muscles over the next few weeks.