The Heart Name

Questions
1. Your heart ______. A. is a muscle B. carries carbon dioxide to your cells C. holds your emotions D. all of the above 2. Your heart's job is to ______. A. help you breathe B. make heat to keep your body warm C. make you strong D. move blood to all the parts of your body 3. Your heart and ______ work together to supply your body with oxygen and to remove carbon dioxide from your body. A. fist B. stomach C. brain D. lungs 4. The process that moves ______ to every part of your body is called circulation.

The Heart
By Brandi Waters Many people think of love when they think about their hearts. They might say, "I love you from the bottom of my heart." Sometimes people complain of having a broken heart when they are sad. A person who does something mean might be described as being heartless. Actually, your heart has nothing to do with your feelings. Your heart has a much more important job. Your heart is a big muscle. It is about the same size as your fist. Like all muscles, your heart can "flex." It makes a squeezing motion when it flexes. Your heart does this over and over again. This is your heartbeat. Your heart beats to move blood to all the parts of your body. This process is called circulation. It takes less than a minute to move blood to all of the cells in your body! Blood is pumped to your lungs where it picks up oxygen from the air you breathe. Next, the blood is pumped from the heart to other parts of your body. The blood delivers oxygen to all your cells. It also carries away waste that your cells don't need. This waste is carbon dioxide. Your heart keeps beating and carries the blood back to your lungs. There, your blood exchanges carbon dioxide for oxygen. When you breathe out, or exhale, the carbon dioxide is removed from your body. Your heart carries oxygen to all the parts of your body. This is why your heart is so important. If your heart stops beating, your cells do not have oxygen. They stop working. Your body cannot survive for very long without oxygen. Your heart helps to keep you alive.

5. How big is your heart?

Name

Explain what your heart does and how it is important in keeping you alive.

Why do you think that people have associated the heart with feelings, especially feelings of love? Explain your reasoning.