The heart is actually located in the middle of the chest near the lungs, not the left where you would place your hand over your heart.

The heart is tipped over the left side of the chest which causes it to tap the left side making it seem like that is where it is

located.

If you are a child your heart is about the size of your fist.If you are an adult your heart is about the size of two fists.

About 100,000 times a day, and about 35,000,000 times in one year.

• If you are 12 years old how many times has your heart beaten?– A. 200,200,200– B. 420,000,000– C. 320.120,200– D. 500,000,000

A pulse is the blood you feel stopping and starting throughout your arteries. You can find your pulse by placing your two fingers on your neck or wrist. As a kid your resting pulse rate should range from 90-120 beats per minute.Your pulse slows down as you get older and an adults pulse averages 72 beats per minute.

• Your pulse can be found by placing your two fingers on your wrist?– A. True– B. False

If you were to take a tennis ball and squeeze it really hard you are using the same amount of force your heart uses when it pumps blood. Even when you are resting your heart is hard at work and works twice as hard as the leg muscles of a person running!

The heart pumps about 1 million barrels of blood in a lifetime!An adults heart pumps about 5 quarts of blood each minute which is about 2,000 quarts of blood per day!Blood is about 78% water.

• If the heart pumps 2,000 quarts of blood in 1 day, how many quarts does it pump in 1 week (7 days)?– A. 7,000

– B. 10,000

– C. 12,000

– D. 14,000

Your body contains 6 quarts of blood.Blood takes about 20 seconds to circulate throughout your heart. These 6 quarts circulate throughout your body 3 times ever minute!In 1 day your blood travels 12,000 miles which is more than 4 times the distance from coast to coast in the United States!

• If your blood circulates 3 times every minute and there are 60 minutes in 1 hour, how many times does your blood circulate in 1 hour?– A. 180

– B. 200

– C. 450

– D. 1,000

When you listen to your heart you hear a noise that sounds like lub-DUB that is your heart valves opening and closing. The “lub” sound your heart makes is when the mitral and tricuspid valves close.The “DUB” sound is when the aortic and pulmonary valves close after the blood has been squeezed out of the body.

1. Oxygen-poor blood (shown in blue) flows from the body into the atrium.

2. Blood flows from the right atrium into the right ventricle.

3. The right ventricle pumps the blood to the lungs, where the blood releases waste gases and picks up oxygen.

4. The newly oxygen-rich blood (shown in red) returns to the heart and enters the left atrium

5. Blood flows through the left atrium into the left ventricle.

6. The left ventricle pumps the oxygen-rich blood to all parts of the body.

• The heart is a muscle so to keep it in good shape and help it stay strong it is important to exercise.

• You can exercise by being active, play outside, jump rope, dance, run, and even ride your bike!

• Also, it is important to eat healthy foods.• Foods such as fruits and vegetables are

very good for your heart, you should try to stay away from fats such as McDonalds French Fries!

• Lastly, don’t smoke. Smoking can damage the heart and blood cells.

• Broccoli is a fruit and is good for my heart.– True– False

You will be creating a healthy heart mobile in which you will cut out the heart in the following link.You will then have to hole-punch the circles and hang a string with healthy foods that are good for you heart attached to the strings (such as a banana).Decorate the heart with different types of activities that are good for your heart (such as riding a bike).You will have two days to complete this project.

Sources

• http://www.clevelandclinic.org/heartcenter/pub/guide/heartworks/heartfacts.htm

• http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/eheart/facts.html

• http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/body/heart_noSW.html