Does reading Funnybones help children understand a Year 1 Human Body topic module?
Using Funnybones to Teach the Human Body in Year 1
Reading the classic children's book Funnybones by Janet and Allan Ahlberg can be an engaging way to introduce a Year 1 topic on the human body. The humorous story follows the adventures of a family of skeletons, providing a fun and memorable way for children to learn about what lies inside the human body.
Key Benefits of Using Funnybones
- Engaging and relatable story: The Funnybones stories are full of humor and appeal to young children, making the topic more engaging and memorable.
- Curriculum links: The story provides a great curriculum link into learning about the human body and skeleton.
- Sequencing and reading practice: Activities like reading, sequencing the story, and labeling body parts help children practice important skills.
- Hands-on learning: Children can create moving skeletons, make skeleton puppets, and engage in other hands-on activities to deepen their understanding.
Suggested Activities
- Read the story and have children retell it using story props or sequencing pictures.
- Label body parts and learn the names of different bones using word cards and worksheets.
- Build a skeleton model and label the different types of bones (flat, long, short) and their functions.
- Sort pictures into "scary" and "not scary" skeletons to discuss what skeletons really look like.
- Write about the characters and create new adventures for the skeletons.
By incorporating the beloved Funnybones story, Year 1 students can learn about the human body in a fun, engaging way that supports key skills like reading, writing, and hands-on learning.
