Heart Beats

What you need:

• nothing — just you!

What to do:

1. Let your child listen to your heartbeat by putting her head on your chest.
2. Show your child how she can feel her own heart beat by putting her fingers on the side of her windpipe. Explain that this is called a pulse.
3. Explore with your child: How can she make her heartbeat speed up or slow down? What happens if she runs? What if she jumps up and down? What if she lies down? What if she splashes ice-cold water on her face?
4. Explain to your child that her heart beats to pump blood all over her body. This gives her body energy. When she exercises, her body needs more energy and the blood needs to move around faster, so her heart beats faster.

Learning benefits:

• supports learning about how the body works
• provides practice with listening and observation skills