Third Grade Joints

Lesson Title
I Like to Move It, Move It!
Grade Level
Third Grade
Objective
Students will experience and respond to the I Like to Move It music video from the movie
Madagascar to get their minds thinking about human body movement. In small groups, students
will manipulate life-size foam skeleton puzzle pieces, common objects, and bones (straws) and
joints (Play-Doh) to identify, explore, and understand the concept of movement and the existence
of hinge, ball and socket, and gliding joints. Students will enjoy a physical activity that enables a
deeper discovery of joints, where they are found, and how they function in the human body as
they manipulate their own bodies. Share a read aloud of Where Two Bones Meet: Joint Efforts
in The Bones Book and 24-Piece Skeleton by Stephen Cumbaa. Students will expand their
creativity and knowledge of joints as they compose lyrics to the I Like to Move It music and
choreograph a joint inspired dance to share with the class demonstrating an understanding of the
structure and function of joints in the human body.
NCSCOS Objectives
Science
4.03 Describe the function of different types of joints: Hinge, Ball and socket, Gliding
Music
1.06 Sing expressively with appropriate dynamics and phrasing.
Dance
2.04 Improvise, create, and perform dances based on own ideas and concepts from other sources.
Background
Students should possess a strong knowledge of the skeleton as a system of the human body, the
function of bones, and the skeleton and its component bones. Prior learning is the foundation for
the exploration, identification, and understanding of joints and joint function. Students must
possess the capacity to learn about the function of hinge, ball and socket, and gliding joints.
Materials
Computer(s)
5 Skeleton Floor Puzzles
5 Brown paper bags
5 Measuring spoons
5 Lollipops
5 Hinges
8 Dominoes
8 Rubber bands
The Bones Book and 24-Piece Skeleton by Stephen Cumbaa
15 Containers of Play-Doh (5 in each of 3 different colors)
3 Packages of straws
Scissors
5 CD players
5 CDS with the I Like to Move It music without the lyrics

Strategies
Before
To begin, have the students open their science journals and then present the I Like to Move It
music video (as found on YouTube) from the movie Madagascar. After viewing the video, tell
the students you have two interesting questions for them questions that will really make them
think. Inform them they will have only a few minutes to respond in their journals so they need to
think quickly. Ask the students, Are bones bendable? and How do you move it, move it?
Record the questions on the dry erase board and have students copy them in their journals.
Encourage them to record everything they know about whether or not bones are bendable and
how they move it, move it. Encourage them to sketch their bodies and indicate how they move.

Divide the class into five small groups. Distribute one skeleton floor puzzle to each
group. To begin, each group should divide the pieces evenly among its members. Ask the
students to put the skeleton floor puzzle together one piece at a time. As each student
presents a piece, he/she should state the name of the bone (as indicated on the back of the
puzzle piece) aloud and add it to the floor puzzle. Once the skeleton is assembled,
distribute one pad of sticky notes to each child. (Each student within a group should
receive a different color.) The students should manipulate the skeleton puzzle and their
own bodies to create and explore movement. As they observe and discuss body
movement, students should take turns (one-by-one) identifying a point of movement on
the skeleton and tagging it with a sticky note. As a group, students should determine and
discuss how movement occurs at each tagged location.
During
To further explore the concept of movement within the human body, distribute one brown paper
bag (each filled with a measuring spoon, a lollipop, a door hinge, two dominoes, and two rubber
bands) to each group. Ask the students to manipulate the contents of the bag to construct models
that demonstrate how movement occurs at the points tagged and discussed on the skeleton floor
puzzle. This activity will enable students to identify the existence and functions of joints in the
human body.
Have students stand in their groups and guide them through an activity to explore body
movement and the function of joints. Instruct students to do the following:
Bend your knees and observe how your legs move.
Move your arms and legs around to observe how movement occurs at the shoulders and hips.
Move your wrists and ankles to determine how your hands and feet move.
Jump up and down to determine how your bones respond to the impact.
Then ask students to repeat the activity and discuss observations, discoveries, and questions
within their groups. Each student should record the observations of the group and questions
prompted by the activity.
Next, share a read aloud of Where Two Bones Meet: Joint Efforts (pages 48 50) from The
Bones Book and 24-Piece Skeleton by Stephen Cumbaa. These pages formally introduce relevant
vocabulary (joint, hinge joint, ball and socket joint, and gliding joint), provide fundamental
information regarding the three major types of joints (hinge, ball and socket, and gliding), discuss
the varying degrees of mobility enabled by each joint type, and discuss shock absorption as a
function of joints.
Now invite children to build their own bodies. Before distributing materials, challenge students to
independently construct skeletons using bones (straws) and joints (Play-Doh). Instruct students to

use one color to represent each of the three joints and use scissors to cut bones (straws) to the
appropriate size for their skeletons. Briefly model the process for students. Distribute materials.
Encourage students to discuss the location and function of joints within their groups as they work
to build skeletons that effectively represent the bones and joints in the human body.
Finally, inform students they will now become artists inspired by the joints of the human body.
Ask each group to compose lyrics to the I Like to Move It music and choreograph a bone-inspired
dance to share with the class. Inform students the song and dance will be used to assess their
understanding of joints in the human body. Circulate the room during this process to ensure
participation.
After
Each student will be required to present his/her skeleton, identify a Play Doh joint and whether it
is a hinge, ball and socket or gliding joint, and share one of its functions with the class. The
teacher should record the functions of each joint type on a separate poster to be displayed in the
classroom.
Then each group will be required to present its joint inspired song and dance to the class.
Assessment
Consider the participation of each child during the composing of lyrics and dance choreography
as well as the presentation. Use the dance to assess the expressiveness of each childs singing
(Music 1.06) and his/her ability to contribute to the creation and performance of the dance (Dance
2.04).
Challenge students to independently sketch one example of a hinge, ball and socket, and gliding
joint in their science journals. Each of the 3 joints should be labeled. For each joint, challenge
students to write 1 complete sentence identifying a function of the joint and 2 complete sentences
demonstrating how the joint is used to complete a particular task or activity. Provide an example,
The ball and socket joint in my shoulder allows me to throw a baseball.
Students science journals should be used to assess each childs knowledge and understanding of
the function of the three major types of joints (Science 4.03). Use the rubric below to assess each
childs knowledge of hinge, ball and socket, and gliding joints and his/her ability to use relevant
science skills to illustrate and label the 3 joints, compose 1 complete sentence that identifies a
function of each joint and 2 complete sentences that demonstrate how each joint is used to
complete a particular task or activity.
References
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x3W6hutEj8 - I Like to Move It music video from the
movie Madagascar
http://www.dpi.state.nc.us/docs/curriculum/science/units/elementary/3goal4.doc - Grade 3
Curriculum Unit Human Body
Constructivist Philosophy
Students will actively participate in small group activities of discovery. Working together, they
will discover the purpose of joints in the human body. Through hands-on exploration and
experimentation with the skeletal system and the joints found between bones, students will
successfully identify and describe hinge, ball and socket, and gliding joints and the functions of
each. The hands-on experiences with life-size foam skeleton pieces, investigation of common
objects used to represent joints, physical activity, brief read aloud, construction of skeletons using

bones (straws) and joints (Play-Doh), composing of lyrics, choreographing of a joint inspired
dance, and presentation will facilitate the exploration of joint function and enable students to
discover and understand just how we move it, move it.
Adaptations
A student with a physical disability may adapt his/her dance movements to leverage the strengths
of the child (upper body movements, leg movements, head movements, etc.)
A student with a visual impairment may partner with a fellow group member to perform the song
and dance.