Materials Required:
Large roll of plain paper
Markers or crayons
Ziplock bags with stomachs drawn on them
Crackers
Water
Straws (for the esophagus)
Long string (for the small intestine)
Empty cardboard paper towel tubes (folded into 3 sections for the large intestine)
Measuring tape
Brown Play-Doh
Steps Involved:
Split the students into groups of 3-4.
Have each group work together to draw a life-size outline of a boy or girl on the large roll of paper. Encourage them to add faces, hair, and other details.
Give each group a Ziplock bag containing a mixture of crackers and water to represent the stomach contents. Have the students squish the mixture to simulate food digestion in the stomach.
Provide each group with a straw (esophagus), a long string (small intestine), and a folded cardboard tube (large intestine). Ask them to place these items on their life-size model in the correct anatomical locations to represent the digestive organs.
Discuss the length of the small intestine with the students, mentioning that it is about 10 feet long. Use a measuring tape to show this length, and discuss how the intestine fits inside the body.
For extra fun, have each group make “healthy poop” using brown Play-Doh while discussing how healthy digestion results in healthy waste.