Science 3
The City School
Handout Number: 2.5.1,2 Science
Topic: Skeleton
Name: ___________________ Class: ___________
Learners will be able to:
2.5.1 Explain that humans and some animals have internal skeletons, accurately describing the function of the skeleton in providing
support and protection for vital organs.
2.5.2. Identify the skull, spine, ribcage, and specific bones of the arms and legs, and explain their roles in providing support and
protecting organs.
Animals, including humans, that have a skeleton inside their body with a
backbone, are called vertebrates.
Scientists call the bones of the spine the vertebrae. This gives us the name
vertebrates.
Look at the diagram below and identify four different animals' skeletons. Some
of the parts of animals are similar and some parts are different. For instance,
all skeletons shown here have a backbone or spine, but only one has fin bones.
An adult human has 206 bones. Babies are born with 300 bones. As they grow,
their bones grow together. They have 206 bones as an adult.
The skeleton is important. It has three main functions (jobs). These are:
• to support your body
• to protect parts inside your body
• to help you move
Our skeleton also gives us a ‘shape’, just like the hand gives a hand puppet a shape Inside our
body, there are lots of organs. We
have a brain in our head and a
Fin bones
heart in our chest. Organs are soft.
They need protection. This is one
of the functions of our skeleton.
The skeleton is like the protective
clothing that some sportswear
people wear, for example, cyclists
wear helmets and cricketers wear
gloves.
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The human skeleton is made of bones and grows as we
grow.
The picture shows a human skeleton at different ages.
As you get older the skeleton grows. However, once
you are 18 your skeleton stops growing.
Muscles help animals move
Bones cannot move on their own. Animals, including
humans, need muscles to move. Muscles work in pairs.
For example, two muscles work together to move your Figure Showing human skeleton at different ages
arm. One muscle contracts (gets
smaller) while the other muscle
relaxes and becomes longer.
Look at the figure 3. When you bend
your arm, you contract the muscle
on the upper arm- the biceps; and
relax the muscle below the triceps.
Our skull protects our brain and
our ribs protect our heart and
lungs.
The skeleton bends at joints such as
knees and ankles.
Joints are where two or more bones
join together.
Figure 3 Arm muscles
Science 3
The City School
Handout Number: 2.6.3 Science
Topic: Skeleton
Name: ___________________ Class: ___________
Learners will be able to:
2.6.3. Explore the diversity of animal skeletons, comparing and contrasting endoskeletons, exoskeletons, and hydrostatic skeletons.
Skeletons are the bones that support the parts of the body. The three main types of skeletons
are:
• endoskeletons
• exoskeletons
• hydrostatic skeletons, also called hydro skeletons
Endoskeleton
Endoskeletons are probably what most people think of when they talk about all skeletons. Like
us, humans have bones inside our bodies.
The body of all animals need support, but some animals do not have skeletons like humans.
Animals like this are called invertebrates.
Exoskeleton:
An exoskeleton is a hard outer shell that protects and supports some animals, like insects, crabs,
Figure 1 A hermit Crab, its tail is soft so these crabs find old shells to put their bodies into for protection.
Science 3
and spiders. It is made of a material called chitin, which is strong yet flexible. This type of skeleton
keeps the animal safe from dangers and helps it stay in shape.
A crab, for example, has a hard outer covering rather than hard bones inside it.
Examples of animals that have
exoskeletons are:
• insects
• crabs
• clams
The animal's exoskeleton completely
covers the outside of the body and the
muscles inside attach to it. Exoskeletons
are hard and protect the body.
While exoskeletons are great for
protection, they can also make it harder
for the animals to grow very large.
Because the exoskeleton is hard and rigid,
an animal cannot grow unless it sheds its
old exoskeleton and secretes a new one. This process is called moulting. Look at the picture of a
lobster with its old shell.
Hydrostatic Skeleton:
Hydrostatic skeleton is different because it doesn’t have a hard outer shell. Instead, it uses the
fluids inside the body to stay strong and move around. Many soft-bodied animals, like jellyfish
and earthworms, have hydrostatic skeletons.
The fluid inside helps them change shape and allows them to move smoothly through water or
soil. This kind of skeleton is very flexible and helps these animals adapt to their environments,
making it easier for them to wiggle, stretch, or squish through tight spaces.
A worm has no hard parts. Its body is made of a watery liquid, which helps the worm keep its
shape.
Figure 2 A Red Sea star has a hydrostatic skeleton Figure 3 An octopus also has a hydrostatic skeleton
A worm is not protected from damage because it has no hard parts. The hard covering of a crab
means that it is well protected. In humans, only some parts of our bodies are protected by bones.
For example, ribs protect your heart and lungs.
Science 3
The City School
Handout Number: 2.7.4 Science
Topic: Skeleton
Name: ___________________ Class: ___________
Learners will be able to:
2.7.4 Differentiate between different types of joints (e.g., hinge, ball and socket, pivot).
Although the bones in your arm are not bendy, you can bend your arms. Each arm contains more
than one bone and can bend where the bones meet.
The parts of your body where bones meet and move are
called joints.
One common type of joint is the hinge joint, which works
like a door. It allows movement back and forth, like when
you bend your elbow or knee.
Hinge joints can only move in one direction, making
them great for actions like walking and jumping.
Another type is the ball and socket joint, which is found
in places like your shoulders and hips. This joint allows for a wider range of movement because
the rounded end of one bone fits into a cup-shaped socket of another bone.
This means you can move your arms and legs in many directions, such as
swinging them around or reaching up high.
More Joint Types: There are also pivot joints, which allow for rotation. A
good example is the joint in your neck that lets you turn your head from
side to side. In a pivot joint, one bone rotates around another, giving you
the ability to look left or right easily.
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Cartilage
Joints need to be both strong and stable, yet able to make movements freely. The ends of bones
which meet in a joint are covered in cartilage so that they can glide over one another in
movement. Cartilage is a tissue which protects our joints and bones from rubbing off one
another. Some cartilage does not have blood vessels or nerves so it can take a long time for
cartilage to repair if it is damaged.
There are more things in the skeleton apart from muscles, bones and joints. These are called
ligaments and tendons.
Tendons are strong tissues that attach muscles to bones. They
are responsible for transferring the force generated by muscles
to the bone, allowing body parts to move.
Tendons (shown with T in the diagram) are not elastic and do
not stretch. This allows the muscles (shown with the letter M in
the diagram) to pull on a bone. If tendons were stretchy when
a muscle contracted to move a joint, it would stretch the
tendon and the joint would not move.
Tendons have to be very tough and strong to hold powerful
muscles to strong bones.
Ligaments are also strong tissues, but they connect bones to other
bones at joints. Ligaments are elastic and stretchy. This allows the
joint to move where it needs to but keeps the bones aligned to the
joint and helps to prevent too much movement or dislocation.
Figure 2 Ligaments are shown in pink
colour.
Science 3
The City School
Handout Number: 2.8.5 Science
Topic: Skeleton
Name: ___________________ Class: ___________
Learners will be able to:
2.8.5. Describe bone injuries like fractures and explain how bones can heal over time.
What things can go wrong with muscles?
Muscles are attached to bones by strong cords called tendons. If a muscle exercises too much,
its tendon may swell up and become painful. This is called tendonitis (pronounced ‘ten-don-I-
tus’).
Strains and Sprains
A strain occurs when a
muscle or tendon is
stretched too much and
tears. This usually
happens if someone
suddenly does a lot of
exercise when they are
not used to it.
A sprain occurs when the cord connecting two bones (a ligament) is stretched too much and
tears. An injury usually causes this, such as a twisted ankle or twisted knee.
Muscular Dystrophy
Muscular dystrophy (pronounced ‘musk-you-lar-diss-trof-
ee’)
It is a disease that some people are born with. They have
muscles that slowly get weaker and weaker.
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Fracture
Traumas like falls, car accidents and injuries often damage your skeletal system. Some of the
most common injuries include bone fractures.
Just for Information!
Human Skeleton X-rays
We cannot see bones. They are covered by layers of muscles and skin. Special scientists
called radiographers use X-ray machines to take special pictures of the bones inside the
body.
If you fall and break a bone, a radiographer will take an X-ray to look for a broken bone. A
doctor can then mend the bone by moving the broken parts back together. They then put a
plaster cast to stop the bone from moving.
Figure 1 X-ray of an arm showing fracture.
Figure 2 showing thigh bone (femur) fracture
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