Nowadays, there is no secondary option but to let kids understand how their bodies work and ways to take proper care of them. Perhaps, nothing is as important as a healthy heart and circulatory system. Using some of the best healthy heart activities is one way to teach anatomy in a fun-filled manner.
Preschoolers don’t have the patience to sit through a whole lecture on preventing heart disease. So, getting some of the healthy heart activities for preschool incorporated into their daily routine will be a game changer for sure. It will help kids learn how important it is to care for their hearts and how they can do the same!
So, let’s delve right into some of the heart activities designed purposely for preschoolers now!
1. Start by revealing the circulatory system
Image Source: Photo by Pixabay; pexels
One of the best and cool ways to introduce a circulatory system to preschoolers is to use invisible ink. Known as one of the best healthy heart activities for kindergarten, it works by using DIY invisible ink using some supplies from your kitchen! Then draw a model of the system on paper. After that, let kids reveal the magic and envision what lies beneath their skin.
2. Craft a Play-Doh version of the circulatory system
Kids love to play with Play-Doh! So, get that opportunity to use the product they love in molding a circulatory system! It is yet another healthy heart activity for toddlers to help them understand more about the heart and its importance. You must draw an outline of the human body and then grab some blue and red Play-Doh from the toy boxes. Now, use these products to make veins in blue and arteries and the heart in red.
3. Multiple kid-friendly circulatory system videos
Image Source: Photo by luca9257: Freepik
If you research online, you will be amazed to come across so many kid-friendly circulatory system videos online. Watch anyone with the little preschoolers, which will help them understand more about their hearts. It forms one of the major healthy heart activities that kids love because they are more into visuals these days!
YouTube houses multiple videos that will teach kids about hearts, blood vessels, and more. Just put on a projector at school and then place a video on the screen. The little ones will be mesmerized by the visuals and gain more information from them.
4. Read them a book
Every school has a small library attached to it. So, check that library to purchase any of these smart books for the pre-K and elementary-age kids. Some of the major ones to give out a try are:
- Heart Your Heart by Paul Showers
- The Heart by Seymour Simon
- A Drop of Blood by Paul Showers and more
Not just in schools, but these books are available from any store. So, parents can also read the book to their kids.
5. Try creating a heart house
One of the most popular healthy heart activities for preschool, you can print out some cute printables and cut them into smaller pieces, much like a zig-saw puzzle. These prints will be compared to the chambers of the heart to house rooms. This is a simple analogy that the little minds will understand without any issue.
6. Play circulatory system game
Image Source: Photo by Pixabay; Pexels
If you search online, you will come across a free printable PDF game focusing on the circulatory system. Print those PDFs out for the little kids to practice their coloring and learn more about the heart and circulatory system. It is one of the major healthy heart activities for kindergarten followed these days.
If you want, you can easily create a life-size model and let multiple kids form a group and work on it. It will not just teach preschoolers about a healthy heart, but they will learn how to work together as a group and socialize.
7. Turn the plastic bag into an inflatable heart
With the help of a simple plastic bag, you can create a simple heart model. Then use the straws to breathe right into it and see how the bag expands and contracts. Make it “beat” in rhythm. Kids are really interested in arts and crafts, which look magical. So, in no time, they will start making their own plastic bag hearts and work on the circulatory system.
8. Scoop water to beat the clock!
Research shows that a heart pumps around 1.3 gallons of blood per minute. Do you think you can keep up with it? It is one experiment to do with preschoolers. All you need to do is fill up a container with water and then set a timer. Give them a small cup to scoop water into another empty container as fast as they can. They will be amazed to know how fast the heart works when they fail to beat the system!
9. Create a simple stethoscope
The stethoscope is a device used for checking heartbeats, and every doctor uses it. It is a common procedure to follow when entering a doctor’s chamber. Kids are well-aware of it and might have tried listening to their own hearts under a doctor’s strict guidance.
Try creating a stethoscope using simple arts and crafts materials to help them gain more interest in the heart and circulation system. Create a simple version using a cardboard tube and plastic funnel so that kids can try it out on their own. They will listen to their friend’s heartbeats and will gain more interest in this organ. It is one of the fun-filled healthy heart activities for toddlers you can try!
10. Using marshmallow to see your pulse
Once you have heard your heart using the makeshift stethoscope, how about trying to see this pumping mode into action? As it is known, kids love things with visual explanations, and they will stick to their minds for a long time.
All you need to do is push a toothpick inside a marshmallow and set that on your upturned wrist. Now, hold very still, and you can see the toothpick bouncing up and down with the pulse! Once you have shown a demonstration, it is time for the kids to try that out!
11. Create a functional heart pump
Now is the time for the kids to know how the heart functions properly and smoothly on a daily basis. For that, you will need some empty plastic water bottles and drinking straws. These products are easily available around school and at home. Now use these materials to create a working model, which will actually pump “blood” from one chamber to another. You can add red dye to water or use any red liquid or beverage to represent blood.
Follow any one of these activities to make the preschoolers understand the importance of heart health
These are a few of the many activities teachers and parents can try with preschoolers to help them learn more about the heart and its functions. They will gain more interest in the new playful methods you try. Within no time, they will be asking you more about the most important organ in the human body, and that’s how you know you have hooked up their interest level! Search the vast world of the internet to learn more about new activities to try out!
