Isaac is now at secondary school and has been learning about the systems of the human body and this week his home learning involved making a cell.
We were invited to review Beating Heart from John Adams, which is a brilliant way of explaining how the heart pumps blood through the body.
The set helps you create a squelchy, beating heart, with the aid of water and balloons!
Construct each half of the heart, attach the pump tubes and fill with water – you could even add food colouring to create fake blood.
I would advise that you start the construction over the sink, as it did get quite messy once we started adding water.
TOP TIP: Don’t add too much water to the balloons, unless you want to get very wet!!
The balloons are secured onto the tubes with elastic bands and clamps, which are quite tricky to attach, so be prepared to help your child build the set.
Once all the tubes are attached, simply squeeze the balloons and see how the water pumps in and out of the heart. You can see the heart walls moving as you pump.
It isn’t perfect, but it does give the kids an idea about how the heart pumps blood through the body.
Disclaimer: We were sent Beating Heart to review. All thoughts and opinions are our own.
I had not heard of this before, but it is a good way of children learning a little bit more about their bodies
this looks like a practical and fun way to learn about the heart. It looks excellent 🙂
This sounds like an interesting way to teach kids about the heart. I guess nothing is perfect and if it’s a learning tool (plus a bit fun) then it’s worth it.
Teaching kids science via toys such as this gives them first hand experience. Glad that they could learn more about how the heart pumps blood through the body.
Looks like an interesting set to help the children understand how a heart works and pumps blood around the body.
Oh wow how cool is this. I love the fact that it is fun and educational too x
Oh wow this is so cool! I think kids definitely learn more when they can actually see something work or touch something tangible. I think I might have to get this for my son! xx
Oh wow this is very cool! What a great to learn all about it.