Wonderfully Made!
Our bodies are amazing
by Rebecca Parkinson (revised, originally published in 2007)
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To consider that we have truly amazing bodies.
Preparation and materials
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You will need three pieces of paper for each of the questions in the ‘Assembly’, Step 3. For each question, write the three possible answers on the separate sheets. Alternatively, create a PowerPoint presentation of the quiz questions and answers. Another option would be to dispense with written answers altogether and ask the children to remember the alternatives.
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Optional: you may wish to prepare a large sheet of paper with Psalm 139.14 written on it: ‘I am fearfully and wonderfully made.’
Assembly
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Tell the children that in the Bible, we are described as ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Psalm 139.14). Ask them what they think is meant by this saying.
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Explain that today, you are going to have a bit of fun, but that you also want the children to appreciate how amazing their bodies actually are. You are going to ask them some questions and there will be a choice of three answers, only one of which is correct. However, this is not meant to be a competition.
It is up to the leader whether they want to have two teams playing, ask for a show of hands as to what the children think is the correct answer, select children to come to the front or allow the children to keep their guesses private so that only they know if they were correct. -
Ask each of the following questions in turn, showing the three possible answers if you have written them out. (You may wish to ask some children to hold up the answers.)
Reveal which is the correct answer, encourage the children to see the ‘wow!’ factor and then move on to the next question. More questions are given here than are probably needed, so select which ones you want to use. The correct answers are in bold.
(1) On average, how many times per minute does a child blink?
15 25 50
(2) How much of a child’s body is made up of water?
30% 75% 90%
(3) How long does it take for food to pass from the mouth to the stomach via the oesophagus?
7 seconds 9 seconds 12 seconds
(4) How many frowns does it take to create one wrinkle?
100 1,000 2,000
(5) How many functions does the liver have?
More than 100 More than 300 More than 500
(6) What is the highest recorded speed of a sneeze?
100 km per hour 165 km per hour 200 km per hour
(7) How heavy is the average adult human eyeball?
2 grams 5 grams 8 grams
(8) How much of an average man’s body weight is made up of muscle?
Half the body weight Three-quarters of the body weight All the body weight
(9) How many times does the average human heart beat in one day?
1,000 times 10,000 times 100,000 times
(10) Where is the smallest bone in the body located?
Ear Eye Little toe
(11) How many bones are there in the human skeleton?
106 206 306
(12) Which is smaller?
The left lung [to make room for your heart] The right lung They are both the same size
(13) How many bones are there in a human hand?
27 32 36
(14) How many bones are there in the human face?
10 14 20
(15) If all of the blood vessels in your body were laid end to end, how far would they reach?
6 miles 2,000 miles 60,000 miles -
Reiterate some of the most amazing facts. Emphasize that these facts are true and that the children really are ‘wonderfully made’!
Time for reflection
Close your eyes and think for a moment about your body. Even now, without you doing anything to make it happen, your heart is beating and pumping blood round your body, and your stomach and intestines are digesting food. Each one of us is made in an amazing way.
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you for giving us such amazing bodies.
Thank you for all the ways I can use my body and all the things I can do.
Amen.
Song/music
‘All things bright and beautiful’ (Come and Praise, 3)
