Digestive System

Second grade is learning a lot about the Digestive System. We know that when you eat, your body has to break down food to use the nutrients it contains. All other food that is not used for nutrients and vitamins is food waste and exits our bodies. Our bodies keep the food nutrients that give us vitamins and energy that keep our bodies healthy and strong. Students are learning that digestion starts before we even take a bite! When we see or smell food, our mouth waters. This is called saliva. Saliva is made, and it has a special chemical that helps to break down molecules in our food. Next…take a bite! Our teeth grind food into smaller pieces. Our teeth and saliva help to make our food soft and easy to swallow. Second grade is also learning about the several different kinds of teeth (32 total teeth in a complete permanent set), and each type of tooth has a special job. We are learning about incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. Today in our lab, we conducted a couple experiments and investigated teeth and saliva! First we investigated teeth by biting and chewing an apple slice. We used mirrors for further observation. We noticed that we use different teeth to bite and chew. Next, students conducted another experiment and investigated saliva. We took a bite of a saltine cracker and let the cracker rest in our mouth without chewing. It was interesting to see what happened next to the consistency and taste of the cracker…saliva did a trick! Learning more about the digestive system is fun!