Healthy Lungs

What can smoking do to human lungs? Create realistic models of healthy and smoker's lungs.

• 1.

  One of the greatest threats to the human respiratory system is smoking tobacco. Tars, an ingredient in tobacco (cigarettes and cigars), irritates airways and leads to infections and diseases such as cancer and emphysema. Lungs typically become clogged with the sticky tobacco tars, reducing their capacity. Tars also kill the cilia hairs in the trachea, which are responsible for cleaning away infections.

• 2.

  Find pictures of healthy and smokers' lungs. What are the differences? Healthy lungs are pink. Smoking turns lungs black from the sticky tars. Diseases can destroy lung tissue.

• 3.

  Use Crayola® Model Magic® to shape models of a healthy lung and a smoker's lung. Dry overnight.

• 4.

  Cover your art area with newspaper. Use Crayola Tempera and Paint Brushes to paint your set of lungs in accurate colors. Dry.

• 5.

  Cut blank index cards into small pieces with Crayola Scissors. Write with Crayola Markers to label the different parts of the lungs. Glue labels to toothpicks with Crayola School Glue. Dry.

• 6.

  Attach labels to the lungs.

Benefits

• Students research the risks that smoking tobacco poses to the respiratory system.
• Students research the differences between healthy and smokers' lungs.
• Children apply their research to create models of healthy and smokers' lungs.

Adaptations

• Diagram the entire human respiratory system.
• Pretend you are a set of lungs in a smoker's body. Write a short poem to describe what happens to you when the person smokes.
• Interview smokers, smokers who have quit, and people who never smoked. What questions can you ask to learn more about the consequences of smoking?