Draw a labelled diagram of the human heart. Describe how blood flows through it, and name the three kinds of blood vessels.
How to lay out the answer. Follow the frame, then write it in your own words.
1 · Open in one line. The heart is a four-chambered muscular pump that keeps blood moving through the blood vessels.
2 · Name the chambers. Two atria above and two ventricles below; a wall, the septum, keeps the right and left sides apart.
3 · Trace the path of blood.
Oxygen-poor blood: vena cava → right atrium → right ventricle → pulmonary artery → lungs.
Oxygen-rich blood: lungs → pulmonary veins → left atrium → left ventricle → aorta → body.
4 · Name the vessels. Arteries carry blood away from the heart, veins bring it back, and capillaries exchange materials with the tissues.
5 · Draw the heart. [Diagram: right and left atria, right and left ventricles, septum, valves, aorta, pulmonary artery, pulmonary veins, vena cava, arrows]
6 · Link to daily life. A pulse of about 72 and a blood pressure near 120/80 mm of Hg are signs of a healthy heart.
7 · Close in one line. So the heart works as a pump that sends blood to the lungs and to the whole body.
Scoring tip: Draw the heart's left side on your right, and add arrows for the direction of flow.
