Year 6 - Science
The use of animal hearts in humans (non-statutory)
The human circulatory system
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
This unit explores the human circulatory system, identifying the heart, blood vessels, and blood functions. It examines how diet, exercise, drugs, and lifestyle affect body function and details nutrient and water transport in animals. Emphasis is on data recording and presenting findings.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to consider arguments for and against the use of animal hearts to repair or replace human hearts.
Key Notes
- It is important to live a healthy lifestyle to help your heart to perform its many functions.
- Some people are born with heart problems. Others may develop disease of the heart or blood vessels later in life.
- A heart transplant is a treatment when a heart condition hasn't improved enough with medications or other surgeries.
- Using animal organs for human transplantation has led to disagreements and debate.
- Both sides of any argument must be researched and considered fully.
Vocabulary To Learn
- heart: The heart is a pump that pushes blood around the body.
- transplant: A transplant is when an unhealthy organ is removed from the body and replaced with a healthy organ.
- pros and cons: Pros and cons are arguments for and against something.
- research: To research something is to find out about it or investigate it carefully.
- debate: A debate is a formal discussion about a subject where people have different views.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Children may not think it possible to replace a vital organ such as the heart with one from another person, let alone an animal bred specifically for this purpose!
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the scientific idea in this lesson using two key points.
It is important to live a healthy lifestyle to help your heart to perform its many functions. Some people are born with heart problems. Others may develop disease of the heart or blood vessels later in life.
2. Define this scientific word and use it in context. 'heart'
The heart is a pump that pushes blood around the body. Include the word in a full scientific explanation, not as a single label.
3. Correct this common scientific misunderstanding.
Mistake: Children may not think it possible to replace a vital organ such as the heart with one from another person, let alone an animal bred specifically for this purpose! Correction: It is important to portray a balanced argument for children to consider and debate, and for them to appreciate that no-one specifically is right or wrong.
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